Beating Heart
by t-ann21
Summary: Ashtyn Miller is a normal college student with a dark secret. Robert Chase is one of the best doctors in Princeton, New Jersey and it's up to him to save her. However both can't deny they have feelings for each other will Robert break down her walls and make her realize not all guys are jerks, or is the relationship bound to fail before it's even begun.
1. Pilot

Triggers for cancer, abuse, and drug overdoses

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It was a cold September afternoon and Ashtyn Miller made her way across campus. Fall was one of her favorite time of year there was just something so great about sweaters and boots to her. She had been having chest pain on and off for the past few days so she figured since that was her last class of the day she would go down to Princeton-Plainsboro hospital and at least have it checked out. She burrowed into her leather jacket and walked into the clinic her riding boots echoing off the linoleum.

"Can I help you dear?" The older receptionist asked looking at the young woman who had just walked into the clinic.

"Yes how full are you guys today?" She asked the receptionist figuring if the clinic was super busy she could just go to the emergency department.

"It all depends on your chief complaint how soon you get seen. I'm going to need to know what is wrong and I'm going to need to fill out some paperwork and I'm going to need your insurance card. This is a free clinic but if you have to be admitted we would need the insurance."

"I've been having mild chest pain the past couple of days I've finally figured I should get it checked out. I don't think it's super serious I just feel like getting it checked out would be the best." She said handing over her insurance card and her driver's license figuring they would also need to verify who she was.

"Thank you dear if you could fill these out of me to the best of your ability. I don't blame you if I were having chest pain I'd be here to." She might have an only been a receptionist but she knew chest pain was a rather serious complaint.

Ashtyn looked down at the stack of forms and filled most of them out she had general knowledge of her family history but she felt it could have been slightly more detailed. She got up and made her way to the reception desk. "Alright dear I'll take those here is your insurance and driver's license back. Have a seat and a doctor will be with you shortly."

Ashtyn grabbed her phone to pass the time after all she could be waiting the rest of the afternoon to see a doctor which was fine because she didn't have any more classes for the day, just cheerleading practice and she was actually due to her coaches insistence.

"Ashtyn come with me please." A nurse said standing in the doorway after about ten minutes of waiting.

"She just got here." A patient snarled looking at nurse he had been waiting since ten am and it was now one on the afternoon.

"She did but her complaint is greater than your complaint." The nurse pointed out taking the girl back to the exam rooms. "Step on the scale for me please."

"Sure." Ashtyn kicked off her shoes knowing they added more weight. She stepped onto the scale she normally weighted around 100-110 pounds usually cheerleading was really good about keeping her healthy.

"112 pounds now can you stand straight?" The nurse questioned getting her height. "5'4." The nurse wrote in down in the chart. "Chest pain aren't you a bit young for chest pain."

"That's what I was thinking, but I'd rather not ignore it and have it be something serious." Ashtyn said sitting down on the exam table and crossing her ankles since her feet didn't touch the floor.

"Lift up your tongue." Molly said getting her temperature. "98.2 which is normal." She grabbed the blood pressure cuff from the wall and secured it around her bicep. "115/50 which is really good. I'm going to find a doctor."

Dr. Cuddy was looking for Dr. Chase when she noticed pristine blonde surfer hair ahead of her. "Chase do you have a second?" She asked running to catch up to him.

"Sure what do you need?" He asked looking at the Dean of Medicine.

"You haven't completed your five clinic hours this week." She explained she really hope he wasn't going to play a House and avoid his clinic hours too.

"I'm sorry about that I was actually heading down there when you stopped me." He said hurrying off in the direction of the clinic sure it was rather boring but it did help out the community and he wasn't House who tried to get out of them he had just simply been busy this week.

"Dr. Chase have I got just the case for you." Molly said handing him the red chart. "22 year old college student complaining of mild chest pain. I'm willing to bet she is trying to avoid some kind of exam.

"I'm not so sure about that who would fake chest pain to get out of a test? Food poisoning and period pain maybe, heart related I doubt it." He walked off to the exam room two. "Ashtyn?" He asked making sure he had the correct room. The girl nodded her head and he sat the chart down on the counter. The girl was really pretty she had wavy blonde hair with pink ends. "So how long has the chest pain been going on for?

"A couple of days it's not really painful just sort of annoying. So Australian or British?" She asked trying to figure out his accent not to mention when he walked into the room her heart almost stopped he didn't look like a doctor what with his blonde hair which was surfer like, and his baby blue eyes made her want to melt.

"Hold out your hand for me. I'm Australian most people assume I'm British. So are you an active person?" He questioned he figured judging from her skinny figure and her toned arms she was an athlete of some kind.

"I'm a cheerleader for Princeton so I'm most certainly an active person." She said holding out her arm. "I was about ready to guess Australian I just didn't want to offend you if you weren't. So why did you move to the States?"

"Cheerleading any recent falls from the pyramid or hit the field hard after tumbling?" He questioned sometimes falls could cause slight chest pain. He placed two fingers on her wrist and looked down at his watch taking her pulse. "Your heart rate is in the 160's." He pointed out knowing right away that something was wrong because the normal resting heart rate for someone Ashtyn's age was 60-100 she was easily sixty points away from normal. "Does your heart feel like it's about ready to pound out of your chest?" He questioned noticing her nail bed was slightly a slight bluish tone.

"Yes my heart does feel like it's about ready to jump out of my chest. No I haven't fallen or taken a rough tumble in at least a solid week. In fact the bruise on my hip is finally clearing up from the last time I over rotated and hit the mat."

Chase reached for the stethoscope in his lab coat pocket. "I'm going to need you to remove your jacket so I can listen to your heart."

Ashtyn shrugged out of the pink leather jacket and tossed it onto the nearby chair. She was still in a white sweater dress and a pair of brown riding boots.

"Breathe in and out." He instructed listening for any murmurs, crackles or other sounds that shouldn't be in the heart and he heart a small murmur. "I'll be right back." He said leaving the room to find Cuddy or House and Cuddy's office was closer. "Want to take me off of House's service so I can deal with this case?" He asked handing her Ashtyn's chart.

"22 year old with chest pain?" Cuddy questioned looking at the chart. "Is she overweight?"

"Nope she is 110 pounds and is a cheerleader for Princeton University. So it couldn't be a heart attack and her heart rate is in the 160's. No family history of heart disease." Chase rattled off as his boss watched him.

"If I were you I'd admit her start her on beta blockers do an EKG, ECHO, CBC, ABG, TEE, lumbar puncture to check for STI's, and a heart biopsy, oh and do pregnancy test. That's what I would do but your specialty lies in cardiology so you probably know more than an endocrinologist." She pointed out. "I'll talk to House about the case who knows it might just peak his interest if not take as much time as you need." Chase was a really good doctor probably the best on House's team she hardly had any problems out of Chase. Cameron was alright she just needed to learn to speak up and think for herself, and not be so quickly to jump to House's defense. Foreman reminded her of a younger House with the same disregard for the rules, which scared her a bit she didn't really want to deal with two House's lord knows one was plenty.

"Thank you for the help I'll admit her and get her started on beta blockers for the tachycardia." Chase went back to the clinic. "Sorry for making you wait. I'm going to admit you and run several different tests. Your heart rate has me worried so it's better to run a couple of tests and have them come back negative than sending you back to the dorm and having you come back only in worse shape. If you would grab your stuff and come with me."

"What kind of tests?" She questioned the young doctor following him out of the clinic.

"Blood tests, a couple of heart ultrasounds nothing to completely painful, unless they all come back clean then we might have to do a heart biopsy." He said leaving out the lumbar puncture Cuddy suggested since she didn't seem to be showing any signs of an advanced stage STI.

"I really hate needles and I don't handle pain well at all." Ashtyn pointed out wrapping herself up in her leather jacket since the hospital was freezing and the fact that she was suddenly terrified something was majorly wrong with her.

"Only thing that should involve needles are the aerial blood gas, an IV, and a complete blood count." He pointed out leading her into the private room. "I'm going to need you to change into this." He said handing her a gown. "Bra has to come off too."

Ashtyn ducked into the bathroom to change out of her sweater dress and leather jacket and into the hospital gown. She came out of the bathroom feeling terrible. "I'm already sick do the hospital gowns really have to be this terrible?" She complained sitting down on the bed as he wrapped an identification bracelet around her wrist.

"I'm sorry most people do hate hospital gowns. So are you allergic to anything?" He asked siting down on the rolling stool.

"Bees, wasps, Depo, and Keflex all of them are severe enough to make me carry an Epi-pen."

"When was your last period?" Chase asked watching her cheeks flush slightly at the question. "I'm sorry I have to ask some really personal questions."

Ashtyn grabbed her smartphone from her pocket and pulled up the app on her phone. "My last period was September 2nd of this month." Although she found the question slightly personal she also knew that it was probably necessary.

Chase wrote the date down in the chart. "Is there a chance you could be pregnant?"

Ashtyn giggled softly at that question. "No chance whatsoever last time I had intercourse was a little more than a year ago. I've also since had a yearly exam and I don't have any STI's either."

"Are you currently on any medication?" Chase questioned knowing that the questions were really personal but things like pregnancy were important in ruling out other diagnoses.

"TriNessa, which is a birth control pill." She answered picking at her nails adverting the gaze of the young physician. "I have really bad cramps which makes cheerleading nearly impossible and it helps." She explained.

"Alright go ahead lie on back for me." He instructed setting down the chart and grabbing the blood pressure cuff from the wall.

"Why America over Australia?" She questioned as he attached the cuff to her arm.

"I grew up there and went to school there I just wanted to be in America and this is one of the best hospitals in the country so a better opportunity. Besides my father is a world renowned doctor who practically wrote the book on Rheumatology. I needed to make a name for myself and get away from his shadow. So where are you from?"

"Talk about family pressure and I grew in Nashville."

"Not really I've made my name and he and I are still close despite the fact there is an ocean between us. Nashville, Tennessee?" He questioned she was being vague and vague tended to mean she was hiding something about her past. "Don't be afraid to talk I've heard it all before, nothing and I mean nothing surprises me anymore."

"Trust me you don't want to know about my past life." She sighed picking at her nail noticing the bluish color under it. "Why are my nails blue?"

"Cyanosis it's shows that your blood isn't getting enough oxygen. Which is strange because your oxygen stats are in the upper nineties." He said after attaching a pulse ox machine to her finger. Really what you could be hiding?" He asked curiously finding the blonde college student interesting and really beautiful which he shouldn't have been thinking about.

"I'm from Nashville, Indiana my parents divorced when I was three. Trust me I don't think you want to hear the rest of it." She said crossing her arms over her chest. She hated talking about her screwed up family.

"My family got divorced when I was younger too, it's common nowadays most people want to run the moment the relationship gets hard. Why do I get the feeling you are still hiding something?" He questioned besides House had drilled the phrase 'everybody lies' into his brain so something that she was hiding could hold the answer as to why the chest pain.

"My mother had lung and brain cancer when I was in junior high. Now it seems like every little thing that hurts her is the end of the world. I'm not even going to call them because I'd rather not deal with her shoving religion down my throat and making my heart all about her. I had to get away and find myself it felt like I was trapped growing up." Ashtyn said almost on the verge of tears. "Everyone assumes cancer only affects the patient they couldn't be more wrong I almost didn't graduate eight grade because of her cancer. I feel terrible for only calling on major holidays but that's the only way I can deal with them." She said on the verge she used to have a great childhood with two wonderful parents, but then her mother met Peter and got cancer and her happy world turned dark.

Chase as a doctor knew how hard cancer was for every party but it was an especially trying time for any child watching their parent go through that. "I hate to tell you this but you might want to call your parents you might think you can handle being alone in a hospital but honestly you can't. I can however limit how often the visit and talk about God. He questioned attaching the heart leads to her chest. He felt sad for the poor girl no one young should ever have to watch their parents almost die of cancer.

"How about we see what the tests see and then I might call my parents, it's not like I'm a minor and you need their permission for medical decisions besides I'm kind of used to being without them.

"That fine that you wait but if any tests shows anything out of the ordinary call your parents. I don't want you going through this all alone. What are you majoring in?" He asked curiously.

"I have my cheer squad, and my sorority sisters so technically not alone. I'm studying psychology." She said still hiding the fact that her father died of a drug overdose and before she graduated high school her parents tried forcing her into an arranged marriage.

He walked over to the cabinets and grabbed the equipment necessary for an ABG, CBC, and IV. He washed his hands and put on gloves. "What sorority are you in?"

"That's a lot of needles." She remarked. "So what do your parents and siblings do?" She questioned mainly she just wanted to hear him talk some more. "I'm a Delta Gamma."

"You are nosey." He teased feeling for her radial artery. "My mother was a nurse, my step-mother is a doctor. My older brother is a doctor, my youngest brother is in medical school, and my sister is still in high school, but plans on medical school.

"So a family of doctor's that's impressive. Why the wrist I've never had a nurse get blood there?" She asked watching him grab the needle.

"Little pinch." He warned collecting a small amount of atrial blood. "That's because it's not the blood we use for a blood test its atrial blood which is a different test all together." He placed pressure over the puncture site to help stop the bleeding.

Ashtyn whined feeling the pinch in her wrist. "So what do you think could be wrong with me?"

"Well it could be a lot of things, you could have a tumor in the heart muscle, you could have an undiagnosed heart defect, could be a virus attacking the heart, or it could just be that you have a heart arrhythmia. Once I get an IV into your arm I'm going to start you on Metoprolol Succinate which will help with your high heart rate."

"Isn't that a beta blocker?" She questioned remembering the name from somewhere.

He placed a bandage over the puncture mark and grabbed the IV needle. "Another stick, I'm sorry you probably feel like a pin cushion and yes it's a beta blocker it'll help lower your heart rate."

"I do feel like a pin cushion but I also know that you wouldn't be doing the tests without having a valid reason." She winced feeling the needle above her wrist. She watched as he placed tape over the IV and pushed clear liquid into one of the open ports.

"Trying to avoid me?" House asked leaning against the sliding door wondering where the kangaroo had hopped off to. "I need the kangaroo dealing with my cases not his own cases besides hearts are boring wouldn't you rather be dealing with a police officer who can't stand?"

"I'm not trying to avoid you. I forgot to do my clinic hours for the week you'll do just fine without me; you seem to be forgetting you have Cameron and Foreman also."

"Have you checked her for syphilis?"

"No and because nothing seems to point to it. She isn't having psychosis it's only high heart rate and a heart murmur." He remarked changing his gloves and collecting her blood. "Alright no more needle pokes for a while." He said tossing the gloves and having a nurse drop the blood and blood gases by the lab.

"I don't have syphilis the doctor I see always does an STI screening. I'm not pregnant nor do I have STI's just because I'm a cheerleader doesn't make me a slut whose screwed the entire football team. Football players are all the same anyway wanting a quick lay and nothing else and I have morals. Shocking isn't it." She already disliked the older doctor leaning against the doorframe she was used to people seeing blonde and pretty and thinking she was easy.

Chase bit back a laugh she was snarking at House like a pro. "If you need help with the police officer you know where to find me. If you will excuse me I have an ECHO to perform."

"Okay but just remember I'm always right." House left the room amused at the snarky girl he couldn't help but think her and Chase would make an excellent couple. She certainly was his type or at least the type he had seen from his previous relationships.

"He was pleasant please tell me he isn't taking over my case." Ashtyn teased he seemed like a dictator.

"That would be what I put up with on a daily bases." Chase joked grabbing the EKG stickers. "Let's see why your heart rate is so high."

"I feel sorry for you I had a swim coach like him once, she's the reason I stopped swimming. I like how his first guess was an STI. I might be in college but is so wrong of me to have morals and want a connection before stumbling into bed naked? I feel like being a cheerleader and a blonde discredit me as a person and make people have assumptions about me that aren't true."

"Advanced stage syphilis can cause heart related problems which is what he is thinking could be wrong. Seeing as how you don't seem to have any of the problems associated with syphilis it's safe to assume it's not an STI. Trust me I get judged harshly too. Most people don't look past the fact that I'm young, blonde, and easy on the eyes. It gets annoying having patients question if you actually are a doctor. So how is school going so far?" He asked attaching the EKG stickers to her chest.

"Trust me I'm up to my eyeballs in research for a research paper and cheer practice most nights and having a job. Wait could stress cause heart problems I've been a little stressed more than usual. What with being cheer captain and having two huge papers due, and being president of public relations."

"It's possible but unlikely unless you have broken heart syndrome which could be caused by stress, but it normally presents itself as a heart attack." He said watching the waves show up on the computer screen which showed high tachycardia but it showed nothing that suggested an arrhythmia.

"My heart hasn't been broken. So is there anything wrong?" She asked trying to get a look at the monitor.

"Nothing that I didn't already know which means it's probably not an arrhythmia." Chase said removing the black sticky pads. "Still having pain in your chest?" He asked wanting to know what her pain level was.

"Yes I still have pain in my chest I'd say it's about a five, but I've had sprained ankles that have hurt more." She said being honest it wasn't painful it was more of annoyance than anything.

"You don't have to be strong if you are in pain don't be afraid to ask for pain medication if you need it." Chase remarked grabbing the ultrasound gel. "Sorry this is going to be cold." He warned squirting the gel onto her chest.

"It doesn't really hurt its more of annoyance. I'd let you know if I was in a lot of pain and that is really cold." She said praying it was nothing and that she could go back to school and endure cheer practice later tonight.

Chase noticed a mass in her left atrium. "You have a tumor which explains the chest pain and fast heart rate." He said pointing it out on the ultrasound.

"So I have cancer in my heart?" Ashtyn asked starting to cry.

"Most heart tumors aren't cancerous I've never seen an atrial myxoma be cancerous granted we'd need to do a heart biopsy to verify that it's not cancerous before you go into surgery to have it removed; but it's safe to assume it's not cancer. Heart cancer is very very rare I've never seen a case of heart cancer." He said cleaning the gel off her chest. "Now are you going to call your parents or should I call them?" He questioned not wanting her to be alone.

"Dr. Chase I'm fine it's a tumor can't you just cut it out and send me on my way? Please I don't want my parents here, I'm fine being alone." She admitted she'd rather do it all on her own then be reminded of her father who died of a drug overdose and her over religious mother or her siblings who blamed her for getting away from their rapidly deteriorating mother.

"Ashtyn all surgeries have risks this isn't a tumor in your appendix it's in your heart. Just because it isn't cancerous doesn't mean it doesn't pose risks to your health. The surgery also has risks and I don't want to be the person who has to make a call to your mother that you died during surgery. I know you don't like your family, honestly there are days that I don't like my family but they are your family. I've seen it before a family member gets sick and the relatives come to visit it can help build back the bridge. At least call them and I'll stop lecturing you. I really don't want you going through this alone." He cooed softly wishing he could tell her that the heart pain was nothing but now she was facing heart surgery which meant he needed to distance himself and shake the feelings of wanting a relationship with the blonde. If he had met her anywhere else he would have already asked her out for dinner.

"I don't care about the risks. I don't want to deal with my family. I haven't seen them since Christmas break freshman year. My family aren't people I want to be around but since you insist I call them I will gladly call them I just need you to hand me my phone from my jacket pocket."

Chase dug the phone out of her jacket. "If at any time the stress you out I will kick them out. I'm going to give you some privacy and go check on your lab work and schedule you for a heart biopsy. I know it seems really scary having a tumor in your heart but statistically the odds of it being cancerous is minuscule." He tucked her chart under his arm and went to schedule the biopsy and grabbed her lab work from the lab. He went to his sort of office and flopped onto the chair he often took naps on.

"So what's wrong with the car?" House asked looking down at Chase.

"Do you mean Ashtyn?" He questioned looking at his boss. "She has an atrial myxoma. I need to do a heart biopsy and make sure it's not cancer. I don't think it is cancer if she did have cancerous cells in her heart she would probably be in heart failure due to the size. Besides heart cancer is rare." He admitted finding an elevated white blood count in her lab results but everything else was in the normal range.

"She's named after a car and you like her don't you?" House questioned looking at him.

"Don't you have to like patients?" Chase questioned avoiding the question. "She's my patient anyway so even if I did like her I couldn't peruse her at least not right now."

"Who cares about ethics you two are around the same age. She's pretty, athletic, and smart your type. What's holding you back once she has surgery she'll be fine and you two can have hot rabbit sex late into the night. She's a cheerleader right just imagine how flexible she is." House joked watching Chase squirm.

"I'm 27, she is only 22 that's a five year age difference not to mention she's my patient."

House grabbed the chart she'll be turning 23 in a couple of months and you just turned 27 a couple months ago so it's more like four years and a couple months."

"I should get back to my patient." Chase said heading to his locker to change into a pair of scrubs. Ashtyn was really pretty with her mossy green eyes and that smile that could easily power a small town.

Ashtyn huffed and hit the end button on her cell phone her mother, step-father, and siblings were coming to see her. She rolled over looking at the windows with the view of Princeton. She really hated that she had to deal with her mother after three and a half years living in New Jersey refusing to come home for breaks and summer stating that she had a job, school, and cheerleading. She watched Chase enter the hospital room dressed in a pair of green scrubs which made his blue eyes pop.

"How'd the phone call go?" He asked rechecking her vitals making sure she was stable for the procedure.

"They are taking the earliest flight out of Indiana. So how about we get the heart biopsy and get surgery scheduled before mother get here before she tries to ship me to the quacks back in Indiana."

"Alright so the point of the heart biopsy is to get collect a sample of tumor tissue and a small amount of actual heart tissue. You will be given a light sedative to help with pain and I'll make a small nick and thread the biopsy needle into your chest and remove the smallest amount of tissue. In total it will take about thirty minutes. Do you have any questions if not can I get you to sign this?" He said handing over the consent form.

"You'll be doing the procedure?" She asked making sure that he'd be the one doing to procedure. She signed the consent form and handed it back over to him.

"Of course I'll be doing the procedure any other questions?" He asked as a nurse entered the room and placed a hair net over her hair.

"No more questions." She said looking at a nurse once he left the room. "So is Dr. Chase any good?" She asked suddenly terrified that he would mess up.

"Dr. Chase is probably one of the best in this hospital. He is a triple board certified as an intensivist, cardiologist, and a surgeon and has a medical license in both Australia and America and he isn't even thirty yet. So I'd say you are in excellent hands." The nurse said rolling her out of the room.

"Wow that's really impressive." She remarked being pushed through the hallway.

"You'll be just fine." The nurse said pushing her into the surgery room.

"Ready Ashtyn?" Chase asked as the nursing team transferred her over to the surgical table. "You're not going to be fully asleep you'll be under a light sedative but you'll be aware of what's going but won't feel a thing."

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be." She remarked as nurse administered the sedative it was odd seeing the young doctor in a mask and safety glasses it was almost a shame for his baby blue eyes to be concealed behind plastic.

Chase made a small nick and threaded the biopsy needle into the hole. "You doing alright?" He asked looking at the heart monitor noticing it had raised a couple of points but she showed no signs of distress.

"I'm doing fine no pain whatsoever." She said looking at the ceiling of the surgical room thinking happy thoughts which were cheerleading memories.

"It's almost over." He said removing the tissue from the tumor along with the heart tissue and sticking the sample into a clear container.

"Is it supposed to hurt?" She questioned tears threatening to pool in her eyes.

"It shouldn't hurt. Why are you in pain?" He questioned removing the needle.

Ashtyn let out a piercing scream and the heart monitor jumped up thirty points. "It hurts." She shrieked holding onto her chest.

"Move your hand for me, and someone hand me an ultrasound probe." Chase ordered squirted gel onto her chest. "Breath I know you're in pain but the more you corporate the sooner I find out what hurts. Nurse push 1 of Morphine." He moved the probe over her chest and what he saw made his own heart want to stop.

"Ashtyn you are experiencing something called an aortic dissection."

She reached for Chase's gloved hand. "That sounds serious is it serious?" She asked fear seeping into her green eyes as tears ran down her face. "Am I going to die?"

Chase pulled off his gloves and held her hand hating to see her cry. "I'm not going to lie an aortic dissection in extraordinarily painful and very serious. In the past an aortic dissection was a death sentence however nowadays you have about a 70-30 shot of making it off the table depending on the severity of the dissection and how quickly you get into surgery after a dissection. I am going to do my best to make sure nothing bad happens to you. Just relax sweetheart and think happy thoughts." He cooed as an anesthesiologist covered her face with a mask.

Ashtyn slowly felt very sleepy but she did as Chase told her to do. She thought of cheerleading and her team winning the NCA College Championships. "I'm scared, Dr. Chase." She said tightening the grip on his hand scared she was going to die.

"I know you are, I'd be scared too." He soothed watching her eyes flutter. "Just go to sleep and when you wake up everything should be just fine the dissection should be fixed along with the tumor." He winked as she released his hand falling into a drug induced sleep.

* * *

AN: I am a busy college student so updates might be a little slow I plan for an update at least once if not twice a week depending on my time anyway I hope you like it. :)


	2. Family

Hi everyone. I don't own House M.D.!

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Ashtyn's eyes closed and the anesthesiologist inserted a tube to help her breath. Chase ducked out of the room to scrub back in since he had broken sterility by taking off his gloves and holding her hand. "Will someone please take the biopsy down to the lab and have them put a rush on it. Also let's have a couple of bags of blood on hand." A nurse handed him the scalpel.

"Chase we are having issues with the police officer." House said from the observation deck.

"Kind of busy at the moment." He said making a midline incision down her chest.

"With what a straight forward atrial myxoma? You have time for a discussion."

"Actually an aortic dissection you have two other team members use them." He said being short with his boss but the dissection required his upmost attention it also didn't help that he found himself having feelings for his patient which only made the case worse.

"How the hell did you miss an aortic dissection?" House questioned Chase didn't miss anything in fact his charts were freakishly organized and very detailed to the point where he was about ready to diagnose the young physician with OCD.

"I didn't miss an aortic dissection. It happened during her heart biopsy one minute she's fine and the next screaming at the top of her lungs even with the sedative."

"You do know her odds." House remarked knowing how dangerous aortic dissections were and he didn't want to see the best member of his team saddened by the loss of a patient.

"It was caught very early and we got her right under it was less than five minutes before she started screaming and the first incision." Chase remarked noticing the mess of blood. "Suction please and would one of you please hand a bag of blood. He knew from previous experience that dissections bled a lot and he'd rather the pretty blonde not bleed out.

"Good luck." Said House as he left the observation deck as Chase got hit with arterial spray. He went back to his office to play with the oversized tennis ball.

"Where's Chase?" Foreman asked wondering where the blonde man had disappeared come to think of it the blonde hadn't been around all day.

"Taking care of a cheerleader with an aortic dissection and atrial myxoma. Wouldn't surprise me if those two ended up getting together. That is after she is all healed and going back to toe touches and flips."

"That sounds messy how's she doing?"

"Do I look Australian to you? He had just started surgery. Have any more theories you'd like to toss around?" House questioned looking at the other two members of the team.

Jessica Drake watched as the plane land onto the tarmac and grabbed onto her husband's hand. She had her wig securely on and was dressed to the nines. "Come on let's go see what the disappointment wants." The four got into a cab which took them to Princeton. "How does she like New Jersey better than Indiana?" She asked looking outside the window. New Jersey just seemed so dull and boring. "Who wants to bet this a ploy?" She asked wondering what her daughter wanted.

The cab pulled up the exterior of the hospital and the family got out. "I'm looking for my daughter Ashtyn Miller." Jessica hating the fact that her daughter kept her dead father's last name. It was tacky she did have a great stepfather whose name she could switch to.

The receptionist typed at the computer. "She's currently in surgery you'll want to head to the second floor and the surgical waiting room should be able to tell you more than I can." She pointed to the elevators on the wall.

Peter grabbed his wife's hand and helped her to the elevator: "Great medical bills." He sighed under his breath Jessica had finally paid the last bill from her cancer from four years ago.

Emily wanted to speak up for her sister but she knew how her parents were sometimes she resented Ashtyn's bravery for going off to college, but then there were times when she hated her sister for leaving her with mother. She was sixteen and had drop out of college to take care of the family. "Ten bucks says it's nothing."

Michael looked at his family he was one who had the most contact with Ashtyn and he knew it wasn't nothing. Ashtyn loved cheerleading and he doubted that she would willingly have elective surgery besides knowing his sister it had to be something major for her to willingly call them. "Emily have some respect for your sister."

Jessica approached the desk. "Hi the receptionist downstairs said that you had more information on our daughter. Her name is Ashtyn Miller."

"She's currently in surgery due to aortic dissection and a tumor in her atria. If you want I can have a nurse explain what is going on with your daughter's heart. She's been in surgery for about six hours now. The surgeon she has is excellent so from personal experience she should be fine."

"How long do these things normally take?" Emily asked looking down at her phone already bored out of her mine. Princeton just seemed so boring what did it have besides an Ivy League school full of pretentious assholes.

"Could be three hours it could be another ten it depends on how severe the dissection is. Make yourself comfortable and a nurse shall be with you shortly."

"Dr. Chase her family is here and they want answers what do I tell them?" The nurse asked staring at the young doctor.

"You tell them what she has, the outcome, and be there for them." He said suctioning another pool of blood. "Hang up another bag of blood. Does anyone have the biopsy results?"

"It was negative for cancer it's just a tumor." She watched as he seemed to relax at the news it was noncancerous.

"Hi Mr. and Mrs. Miller I'm Nurse Lily so what would you like to know about your daughters condition?" She asked sitting across from the family.

"It's actually Drake not Miller." Jessica pointed out glaring at the nurse. "Why don't you start at the beginning?" She suggested.

"Ashtyn checked herself into the clinic downstairs with a complaint of chest pain. Dr. Chase did a brief physical exam and admitted her to the hospital for further testing. An echocardiogram showed a tumor in her heart. He scheduled a heart biopsy and during the heart biopsy to check to see if the tumor was cancerous your daughter starting having major chest pain the echo showed that her aorta was pulling away from her heart. Aortic dissection is very severe there I about a 30% chance she won't make it off the table. She's been in surgery almost seven hours and that's about all I can give you. If she does make it off the table she'll be needing you more than ever."

"Let us pray." Jessica announced grabbing her son and husband's hand. "What did the biopsy show does my daughter have cancer in her heart?"

"Biopsy was negative for any cancer cells it's just a tumor once the surgeon removes it there shouldn't be any issues in terms of the tumor."

"I bet she caused this herself." Peter said he really hated his step-daughter for leaving them alone.

"Nurse what about pregnancy and STI's she is in college after all" Jessica asked curious as to how much of a slut her eldest daughter had turned into.

"Negative for pregnancy and STI's."

"Enough do any of you care that Ashtyn could be dying?" Michael growled slinking off to the back corner away from his parents not in the mood pray besides mother was a hypocrite she smoked even though she had lung cancer and had children from three different guys.

Chase successfully removed the heart tumor after fixing the dissection, the main thought on his mind was if she would wake up or not. He closed up the incision with perfect stitches that could rival the best plastic surgeon. "Take her off bypass and anesthesia." He said removing the scrub cap, mask, gloves, and gown.

The receptionist pulled them off into a bland office looking room as a young doctor with great hair walked into the room. "I'm Dr. Chase I'm the one who is taking care of Ashtyn. Surgery went very well, she isn't out of the woods quite yet. She hasn't awoken from anesthesia and she very well could have had a stroke. Now if you will excuse me I really need coffee and to check on Ashtyn."

"Are you even old enough to have a medical degree let alone know heart surgery and are you even legal to practice medicine in this country?" Peter asked glaring at younger man knowing that he didn't have an American accent.

Chase just left the room heading off to the meeting room for coffee. He grabbed a cup and sat on the chair collecting his thoughts. He was physically and emotionally drained nine hours of surgery was exhausting he wanted to curl up in an on call room and take a nice four hour nap. However he needed to check on Ashtyn before even thinking of sleep.

"So how's your patient doing?" Cameron asked seeing a very tired Chase on the couch. Her colleague looked exhausted.

"She made it through surgery all nine hours of it and her family is just wonderful. I should probably go check on her and get some sleep. It looks like you could use some sleep too." He left the room and headed off to the intensive care unit.

Ashtyn felt like she had been hit by a truck. "Ashtyn?" She heard a voice call out in the distance. She opened one eye feeling like lead. "Hello sleepyhead." Chase teased shining a light into her eyes. "Don't try and talk you have a tube helping you breathe." He grabbed a pair of gloves and turned off the vent. "Take a deep breath." He instructed pulling off the tube and wiping the drool off her lips. He handed her a glass of water figuring her throat was dry and scratchy.

Ashtyn coughed and looked into Chase's baby blue eyes. "What happened last thing I remember was going in for a heart biopsy?" She asked chugging the water he handed her trying to get the nasty taste out of her mouth. "I'm cold."

Chase walked over to the blanket warmer and pulled out a warm blanket. "That's an easy fix." He teased draping the blanket over the two other blankets covering her. "Well sweetheart your aorta decided to dissect and you had to have emergency surgery to repair it. Surgery went very well and we were able to fix the dissection and remove the heart tumor which wasn't cancerous. The tumor was large but it didn't damage the mitral valve."

"Are you up for some visitor's?" A nurse said as her family walked in.

"I'm tired and in pain." Ashtyn said looking at the cute doctor who grabbed the stethoscope from around his neck and placed it onto her chest.

"You're going to be sore for a while you did just have major heart surgery. Can you wiggle your toes?" He asked moving the blanket mountain off her toes.

"Just what is the point of this?" Jessica questioned not even bothering to hug her daughter.

"I'm making sure she didn't have a stroke or any neurological issues from the surgery. "Squeeze my fingers for me." He asked.

Ashtyn squeezed his fingers. "So how long will I be in the hospital for?" She questioned turning a shade of green. "I think I'm going to throw up."

Chase grabbed the barf container and held it in front of her. "Probably a week give or take a couple of days. You did just have major heart surgery it's going to take a while for the pain to subside."

"Why is she throwing up? Has someone's binge drinking caught up to her?" Peter asked knowing his step daughter was probably a heavy drinker.

"It's a really common occurrence waking up from surgery, probably didn't help that it was an emergency surgery and couldn't fast for surgery so she probably still had food in the stomach." Chase said sweeping a blonde strand of hair out of her face. "She also hasn't had surgery before today and everybody comes of off anesthesia differently. She's doing well for having just had major heart surgery."

Ashtyn groaned and grabbed a tissue wiping her mouth with it. "Sorry about that."

"So doc how bad is the bill going to be?" Jessica asked focusing on the cost over how her daughter was doing.

"What makes you think I'm still on your insurance plan? I have my own insurance plan so you don't have to worry about money. Heaven forbid you actually care about me." Ashtyn remarked as Chase placed two fingers against her wrist checking her pulse.

"How do you have your own insurance plan, you are under 26?" Jessica asked not liking the way the doctor was looking at her daughter. "Can we have her transferred back to Indiana? I'm sure she'd feel more comfortable in a place she grew up in."

"I'm on my own insurance and it's really good so you don't have to worry about medical bills. Heaven forbid you actually cared." Ashtyn remarked giving Chase puppy dog eyes to tell her mother that she couldn't be transferred.

"I'm sorry but I can't have her transferred to any hospital. She just got out of major heart surgery it's going to be quite a while before she is able to travel. Now Ashtyn really needs her rest so I'd advise you to get a hotel and sleep off the jet lag. You can visit her tomorrow." He suggested looking down at his patient sensing that she was getting worked up. "Can I get you anything before I leave?"

"Another blanket would be nice unless three is the limit." She requested watching her mother huff and storm out of the ICU unit. "Different parents would be too." She teased it was better than how she thought they would be.

Chase grabbed another blanket from the warmer. "There is no blanket limit. Loosing blood tends to make people colder." He said covering her up with it. "I'm sorry sweetie I'm not a miracle worker. I'm also going to put an order in your chart for a sleeping medication. Sometimes it's hard to sleep in a hospital with the nurses checking on you every hour. So if you can't sleep ask."

"Thank you." Ashtyn croaked grabbing his hand. "Can you at least stay a little longer?" She asked not wanting him to leave quite yet and she was afraid to be alone with her thoughts.

"You and I both need sleep; but I guess I can stay for a little bit." Chase said sitting on the visitor chair. "I now understand why you didn't want your parents here."

Ashtyn turned to face him cuddling one of the extra pillows to her chest. "I could do this on my own. I've been alone since freshman year of high school. She's the reason I didn't graduate on time. I was on track to graduate a year early but the cancer came back and spoiled of my plans of getting out a year earlier. I could be a year into my medical degree. So triple board certified that's impressive Dr. Chase for not even being thirty."

"You aren't alone you have me. So thinking of medical school?" He asked holding her hand. "I wasn't a very good student in undergrad I just find medicine interesting so I did very well in medical school and residency."

"I honestly don't know if I'm going to apply. I'm scared I'll be a terrible doctor."

"I'll let you in on a little secret all doctors think they'll be terrible." He teased watching her eyes flutter shut with her hand still in her hand. It wasn't five seconds later he was sleeping softly in the visitor's chair due to being emotionally drained. A nurse snuck into the room and covered the young doctor with a blanket. It wasn't uncommon for a doctor to fall asleep in a patient room besides Chase was off the clock anyway.

Jessica arrived to the hospital early in the morning. "Just what the hell is going on in here?" She questioned seeing Dr. Chase asleep in the chair with his hand in her daughter's hand.

Chase awoke startled as Ashtyn bolted awake holding her chest. "I must have dosed off last night." He said listening to Ashtyn's heart rate and checking her vitals. "You feeling alright? I didn't mean to wake you."

"I'm kind of sore." She muttered as mother dragged a nurse to find the director of the hospital. "Would you calm down we got to talking and we fell asleep. I'm not coming with you to Indiana. I'm happy here at Princeton. I'm in a great university, I'm a cheerleader and I haven't made anything lower than a B in college. Can you please shut up?" Ashtyn demanded she was a good child so what if she left home for college most people did, besides it as six in the morning and she wasn't in the mood to listen to her mother. She just wanted to go back to sleep despite the terrible bed she was sleeping on.

"What would God think? He is the one who caused the heart issue for being such a bitch and deserting your family." Jessica stated as Ashtyn started breathing heavy.

"What's wrong?" Chase asked placing an oxygen mask over her face noticing that her O2 stats were 90.

"My chest." She whined breathing in heavily scratching at the dressing covering her chest.

"I'm going to need you to leave." He said to the mother and step-father. "Breath sweetheart." He instructed gently figuring she was having a cardiac tamponade or a pericardial effusion. "I'm going to do another ECHO to see what's going on." He said finding the heart swinging back a forth. "You have a pericardial effusion which is really common after surgery." He said as tears streamed down her face from the pain.

He snapped on a pair of gloves as a nurse handed him a needle. "Little stick." He warned draining the fluid from her heart. He covered the tube with a piece of tape as Cuddy walked into the room.

"Dr. Chase my office now." She barked tapping her foot impatiently.

Chase removed the gloves and covered her back up with the mountain of blankets as Jessica flopped onto the couch glaring at him. "Coming." He said adjusting his lab coat. "Try not to have any heart issues while I'm gone." He winked at the blonde whose vitals had stabilized.

Cuddy perched on her desk. "You want to explain why Ashtyn's mother said that you were hooking up with her daughter? You do know how ethically wrong it is to sleep with a patient while she is still your patient." She lectured. "Her heart also isn't stable for sex."

"I was not hooking up with Ashtyn. I went in to check on her and she asked me to stay we got to talking and I guess we both feel asleep. I was asleep in the chair her hand was in my hand. Nothing happened I was just physically and emotionally exhausted after a ten hour surgery. Why don't you talk to her mother since she has been here she has already stressed my patient out a great deal. I would never sleep with a patient, while she was under my care." Technically once she was released he could start up a relationship.

"So you admit you want to hook up with Ashtyn?" She questioned.

"After she is released and only if she has the same feelings." He remarked looking at his boss. "You can't help who you start having feelings for."

"Go back to your patient just remember she is still your patient, what you do outside of the hospital is none of my business." Cuddy said sending him out of her office she knew he wouldn't do anything while she was still in the hospital. He somewhat followed the ethical code, well he was better than House with ethics and she knew what the young doctor was talking about. She too could use a lecture over ethics since she was dating a co-worker whom she was the boss over.

Chase flopped onto House's couch with a cup of coffee in his hand while making surgical notes from last night. "Long night? I heard you got busted by a patient's mother." Foreman remarked hoping the blonde got fired he didn't really like the blonde doctor. He cared too much for the patients and was a better doctor than he was which made him feel stupid since the blonde surfer was a better doctor than him, the Hopkins graduate.

"It was late and she wanted to talk I feel asleep in a chair it was honestly no big deal. Her mother acted like she caught me making out with her daughter."

"I like how you think sleeping with a doctor is a great idea. Do have any idea how disappointed I am in you?" Jessica squawked loudly as she quoted bible verses.

"I never said I wanted to sleep with Dr. Chase. I might be in college but I do have morals mother even if I am no longer a virgin. I can guess how disappointed you are in me. I left Indiana in favor of greener pastures. I'm a member of Delta Gamma, a great collegiate cheerleader we have won several competitions and are on track to win the small coed division come NCA College Nationals, I have an excellent job at Nordstrom. I'm on tract to graduate Summa Cum Laude in less than eight months. Why can't you be proud of me?" Ashtyn whined hating to be known as the family failure. "Do you know how many people I graduated with that currently have one or more children and no college education? I'm a good person mother. I never wanted what you wanted. Why can't you be happy for me for once since the cancer?" Ashtyn cried she hated the person who mother had become. Her mother used to be the best mother. She would always have fresh baked cookies waiting for her and Michael after school. They took summer trips to the zoo and museums in Indianapolis. Then she married Peter and everything changed and shortly after the marriage she was diagnosed with lung cancer.

"My daughter is a cheerleader and a sorority girl. You probably have your wicked way with frat guys it's kind of surprising that you aren't pregnant. I'm not proud of you, I needed you and you haven't been there for me. I haven't heard from you since Christmas freshman year. It doesn't surprise me you are having heart issues, this is God's way of saying you need to come back home and be with your family and get back in the church. I'm willing to forgive you having premarital sex and all the drinking."

"I've slept with one guy mother not thousands. He and I dated freshman year. I'm not coming home. My home is New Jersey not Indiana. I drink but I'm not doing keg stands I prefer a couple of glasses of wine. Hey Dr. Chase." She said seeing the blonde doctor tears running down her face since her mother's words hurt. "I didn't get you in trouble did I?"

"Not at all. Any more chest pain?" He asked resisting the urge to glare at her mother for making the young woman cry. "Any stomach pain?" He asked making sure her kidneys and liver didn't suffer any damage from being under anesthesia for so long.

"My chest hurts a little but it's more like after surgery pain. My stomach does hurt, from hunger." She joked which meant she has no stomach pain.

"I'll have a nurse bring you something to eat. I'll be back to change your dressings later today. Try and get some more rest sleep really does help you heal faster." Chase said with a wink leaving the room and telling the nurse that Ashtyn was starving.

"Stop looking at the doctor like that you shouldn't be having impure thoughts about him." Jessica and Peter barked. "You will have to come back to Indiana so we can take care of you and so we can restore your faith. Luke is still available for marriage. There are medical procedures that can make you a virgin again. He'd never have to know" Peter lectured to his step-daughter.

Ashtyn rolled her eyes ignoring her mother Chase didn't have a ring on his finger so he was fair game. "I have my sorority sisters I don't need to listen to you why I heal. I'm not leaving Jersey. I'd rather check myself into an extended care facility than come back home and deal with quacks who went to an unknown medical school. Now be quite the doctor told me to rest." She hit the clicker turning it to a rerun of Grey's Anatomy. "I would never consent to a medical procedure to make me the perfect girl you think I should be. I never had any intention to marry Luke that was one of your dumb ideas." She sassed turning the volume up on the television drowning out the sound of the bible verses her parents spewed.

"Please like Dr. Chase is any better than any of the doctors in Indiana."

"He kind of his, he is triple board certified which to me sounds better than medical school in North Dakota. I'm happy and you can't force me to go anywhere I'm not sixteen." She rolled her eyes as a nurse brought breakfast which looked really good for hospital food.

"Where is the bacon?" She teased the nurse knowing greasy food was probably off the table as was coffee, at least for a little while.

"I'm sorry Miss Miller, but you can't have anything that could damage your heart walls."

Chase was waiting in the meeting room dressed for the day in a black sweater vest, grey dress shirt, red plaid tie, grey dress pants and black loafers. "Morning guys." He said as Cameron and Foreman walked in.

"Morning Chase." She grabbed a cup of coffee and snickered. "Heard you got busted sleeping in a patient's room." Cameron smirked watching him squirm. "I knew you liked your patient."

"We got busy talking last night and I fell asleep. Stop acting like it's the end of the world. We all fall asleep in patient's room from time to time. She's doing much better today, no pain and is being somewhat civil with her terrible parents. Have any of you done a spinal tap on the patient? The headaches, neck pain, and numbness could be caused my meningitis." He said changing the subject from his lonely personal life to the patient.

Ashtyn had a nurse make her parents leave she couldn't deal with them today she ate her breakfast and binge watched Grey's Anatomy. "That show is so medically inaccurate." Chase said looking at Ashtyn. "So I see your parents left."

"I had a nurse tell them I needed my rest, and I'm self-medicating with terrible TV." She joked. "Come to change my bandages?" She asked turning off the TV finding the young doctor more interesting than TV.

"I did." He said pulling on a pair of gloves and removing the bandages from her chest. "How are things going with your siblings?" He asked noticing her brother sleeping in the corner.

"Better than with my parents. He's not as bad as Peter, he's still annoying but at least he isn't making me feel bad about my life choices." She teased looking down at her chest a sadness in her eyes. "That looks terrible."

"Relax it'll heal. The only reason it looks terrible is because of the stitches so it looks a lot worse than it is. You are healing quite well. So why do your siblings have really common names and you get the name Ashtyn?" He questioned cleaning the wound. Ashtyn was rather uncommon compared to Michael and Emily.

"My father named me, my mother begged him to not name me after the car so he changed the o to a y. My mother hates my name with a passion she prefers the traditional names if she had named me my name would have been Mary."

"Ashtyn is better suited for you, you don't seem like a Mary personality wise." He repacked the wound. "I should get going I'd rather not get in trouble again."

Ashtyn smiled watching her brother stir in the couch. "That'd probably be best." She said sadly wanting to get to know the doctor but at the same time she knew that her brother would rat her out in a heartbeat.

"Have a nurse page me if you are in any pain. In the next couple of days you'll need to start getting out of bed and we will start weaning you off of the strong stuff." He said watching her go back to the TV.

Michael awoke glaring at his sister. "I thought mother had him removed from your case?"

"I'm 22 she doesn't make my medical decisions I make my own decisions. Let me guess you are going to rat me out to mom and dad?" She said wishing her family was back in Indiana and she was in cheerleading practice or on a date with the hot doctor. She fell back asleep to avoid the conversation with her brother.

"Some of your friends are here to see you is it alright if I bring them back?" A nurse asked waking the sleeping girl.

"Please bring them back." Ashtyn said as two of her teammates and sorority sisters ran in.

"We just heard! Are you okay?" Megan asked squeezing her friend tightly.

"I'm fine I wish my parents weren't around but other than that I feel okay. I'm a little sore in places and all I want to sleep."

"So what happened?" Brooklyn asked sitting on the edge of the hospital bed.

"Aortic dissection and I had a tumor growing in my mitral valve. I'm doing fine and should be back in no time. One of you had better brought my homework I refuse to let this cause me to get behind in school or in planning things for our sorority."

"Of course we brought what you need for school and sorority. So any cute doctor or nurses?" Megan asked curiously wondering if her girl was being well taken care of. "Did you here Abby was spotted wearing Derek's letters?"

"There is this one doctor who I kind of like." She admitted as Dr. Chase entered the room. She was surprised to hear that Abby and Derek were a couple he didn't seem like her type not that she cared she wasn't really into the whole who's dating who.

"You doing alright?" He questioned noticing the huge smile plastered on her face and two girls her age in the room which he assumed were the source of her happiness.

"I feel really sore, and sort of sick to my stomach and I really hate this hospital gown. My friends brought me pajamas can I please get out of this hospital gown?" She asked hoping she could get out of the terrible thing.

"As long as it is loose and isn't tight in the chest area I don't see why not. The beta blocker you are currently on has a tendency of making people nauseous and you are going to be sore for a while you did just have major heart surgery. The stronger pain medication is wearing off. Ladies try not to stay to late Ashtyn needs her rest." He said leaving the room after making sure her vitals were well in the normal range.

"You had better been talking about him being the hot doctor. Damn he'd make my heart hurt too. His accent sounds wonderful nothing better than British boys." Megan giggled softly she said handing Ashtyn a pair of wine colored pajamas that had a button downed chest and the Eiffel Tower fleece tie blanket she made at one of the first sisterhood events. "We also brought a couple more pajamas and a can of dry shampoo since I don't think they are allowing you showers."

"Thank you ladies and no I'm not getting showers it's more or less sponge baths." She said sadly as Brooklyn draped the blanket over her. "And yes Dr. Chase was the guy I was talking about and he's Australian not British although the accents do sound similar."

"That's just a form of torture, you already feel like crap so let's not allow them to shower that would just make me feel disgusting and girl you to would look so cute together and his accent is wonderful."

"It so I don't get the bandage wet and I'm still a bit unstable on my feet. I understand the reasoning for no showers I just don't like the reasoning." Ashtyn said burrowing in under the blankets since she was cold. "I do really like him. So Abby and Derek never would have guessed."

Jessica coughed trying to bring attention to herself as she sat down in the chair waiting for the other ladies to leave.

"Hello mother." Ashtyn said turning back to her sisters. "Come by tomorrow and bring Tiffany she and I need to discuss winter formal."

"See you later, Ash." They hugged her tightly being careful not to squeeze her to hard.

Jessica frowned at her daughter. "So winter formal is more important than your actual family?" She questioned noticing the pajamas sitting out on the chair. "What too good for a hospital gown?"

"My sisters brought me clothes and bathroom products and Dr. Chase told me I could wear pajamas as long as they weren't tight in the chest. I thought I asked you to leave so I could catch up on my sleep."

"I did leave and find sorority girls in my place. Dr. Carter told us that you would still need around the clock care after you get out of the hospital so you'll be coming with us back to Indiana." We thought we had Dr. Chase removed from your case since his mind is elsewhere."

"I won't leave Jersey. Can you please leave I'm getting a small headache and would like to sleep off the headache?" Ashtyn begged her mother wanting to take a cat nap.

"This isn't the end of the conversation." Jessica said leaving the room and Ashtyn pressed the nurse button.

"Do you need something?" Julia the nurse asked looking at the blonde watching her scary mother leave the room.

"I was wondering if you would help me into pajamas since I'd rather not rip out anything important and I'd rather not have mommy dearest do it."

"Sure go ahead and sit up." The nurse said helping her out of the hospital gown and into the button down shirt.

Ashtyn put the pants on herself and crawled back under the mass over covers after spraying her hair with dry shampoo and tossing it up into a top knot. She felt much better having clothing that fit and her hair somewhat clean.

Chase came around eight pm to check on her before he left for the night. "Still doing okay?" He asked grabbing his stethoscope and unbuttoning the top pajama button to listen to her heart. "Everything sounds great and you seem to be doing quite well after heart surgery."

"I'd be doing fantastic if my parents would just leave. Whose bright idea was it to tell them that it'd be best once I leave the hospital to go home with them for a week or two?"

"It wasn't me, you shouldn't be traveling so soon after surgery and most good doctors know that it's best to stay and heal and not air travel for at least three weeks after any surgery. It was probably a nurse, and you are 22 you don't have to listen to them, however you will need to stay with someone after you are released after surgery for about a week."

"That shouldn't be a problem I do life in a house of fifty girls." Ashtyn joked pulling the fleece blanket close to her which reminded her of happier times it was the first sisterhood event she was ever apart of after rushing.

"We will discuss that later right now you need to rest I will check on you tomorrow. Sleep tight." He said tucking the blankets around her and shutting off the light.

* * *

Thank you for everyone that has reviewed they really make me happy. To clear up a couple of things this story will follow some of the show but for the most part it's an AU. Chase has an interesting past in this, obviously he didn't go to seminary school for a year. I believe the father issues are mentioned next chapter if not the chapter after that. Ashtyn obviously has a dark past that will be explored in other chapters. I know this chapter is a bit boring and mainly filler and not much happens between her and Chase. I promise the next chapter has plenty of interaction. Oh and to the person calling Ashtyn a Mary Sue you couldn't be more wrong. I'm also not a doctor so obviously some things might not be completely true. :) See you all in a week or sooner.


	3. Jerk

**Warning:** For abuse!

* * *

Ashtyn rolled over today she was having a rough time, she was in pain and she hated her new doctor. He was infuriating he didn't listened to a word she said and talked over her like she was twelve. Her throat was bothering her and everything was itchy.

"How do you feel today blondie?" Dr. Carter snarled walking over to the blonde. "Let's see how you are healing." He didn't even bother putting on gloves.

"Um shouldn't you be putting on gloves?" She asked backing up against the edge of the bed.

"That's none of your concern." He said pulling off the top part of her shirt not even caring about her modesty like Dr. Chase. "You have an infection a nurse will be in to take care of that."

A nurse came in and attached a bag of medication to the IV pole and threaded it into her IV line.

"Hey sweetheart how you doing?" Dr. Chase asked he was getting good at sneaking into her hospital room. He grabbed the stethoscope from around his neck and listened to her heart.

"I can't breathe." She groaned clutching at her throat.

"Open wide." He said shinning a light into her throat. "You're having an allergic reaction to something." He checked the IV pole looking for anything she was allergic to.

She clutched the oxygen mask trying to get air into her lungs tears welling into her green eyes.

Chase pushed the needle full of epi. "Relax, just relax the idiot doctor gave you medication that you are allergic too. Just breath the epi should kick in soon." He wondered why Dr. Carter had given her something she was deathly allergic to. Keflex was traditionally used to treat bacterial infections and she wasn't showing any signs of an infection.

Ashtyn breathing slowed down and she no longer felt like she was dying. "Let me guess the idiot gave me Keflex." She grumbled catching her breath.

"He did, so why would he be giving you a medication that you are allergic too? It's on your chart, and on the red hospital bracelet." He said holding her hand.

"My step-father filled out another medical history and I guess that is what he is going off of over the history you took. Dr. Carter seemed to think I was getting a post-surgical infection. Granted at least that's what I think he was treating. He treats me like I'm twelve and that I have no say in my health decisions." She complained to the young Australian glad that someone was treating her like an adult who could make her own incision.

"Well for one think who treats a surgical infection with Keflex, and two my infection rate is non-existent so it couldn't be a surgical infection. I'd be willing to bet my paycheck that the idiot didn't wash his hands or use gloves when he checked the incision site." He said walking to the sink and washing his hands. "Let's see if you really do have an infection." He pulled on a pair of gloves and pulled back the bandage. "I believe Dr. Carter needs to go back to medical school seeing as how that is an irritation probably due to the fact the bandage hasn't been changed in a couple of days."

"Wouldn't a surgical infection be treated with Erythromycin?" She questioned glad that at least one of the doctor's wasn't a pompous idiot. "You are correct I even called him out on not wearing gloves."

"Yes that is very much proper surgical infection drugs. Now that you are feeling better how about we get that chest tube out. I'm also going to need some more blood, check your vitals, along with some poking and prodding." He joked grabbing the equipment needed to change the bandages, he didn't want her actually developing an infection.

"As long as I don't have to put up with Dr. Carter you can do whatever you want." She said looking up at the ceiling. "So how would we go about changing you back to the one in charge of my care?" She asked since it was her decision. She was trying to appease her parents by switching doctors, but she didn't exactly liked being sent into anaphylactic shock.

"I think it'd be best to not anger your parents any more. I'm still on your case, I'm just checking up from afar and making sure stupid idiots don't kill you." He said being completely honest as he changed her bandages. There was also the whole feelings for Ashtyn that he didn't know how to describe or explain.

"Who cares about my parents can't I have them like surgically removed from the premises or at least the hospital room?"

Chase laughed at her comment of surgically removing them. "I wish that were possible, but it's not." He said covering up her chest with her pajama shirt. "Any stomach, back, or side pain?" He questioned pressing lightly against her abdomen.

"None whatsoever." She said being completely honest as he pressed against her organs.

He reached for the penlight in his lab coat as he checked her neurological function. "You seem to be doing really well for having surgery three days ago. Can I have a finger to check your blood sugar?" He asked making sure her kidneys doing their job.

"Sure." She held up her left hand sticking out her pointer finger wincing as it was poked.

"I'm sorry about all of this. I don't like torturing you, but we really do need to make sure your organs aren't falling or that your vitals are tanking. The good news is that the chest tube will be removed today and you might be able to go home soon." He said squeezing the drop of blood onto the tester. "Your blood sugar level is perfect." He pulled off his gloves and replaced them. "Chest tube removal and I then I'm going to need some blood."

Ashtyn groaned at the thought of a tube being ripped out of her side. "Is there an easier way that you could remove the chest tube?" She asked watching him place meds into her IV line.

"I just gave you a light sedative to help with the pain. Turn on your side and hug the pillow tightly." He said trying to make it as painless as possible.

Ashtyn rolled onto her side and held onto the pillow for dear life.

"Take a deep breath for me." Robert warned pulling off the chest tube dressing. He gently yanked the tube out as she whimpered. "I'm sorry sweetheart there isn't really an easy to insert a chest tube or remove the chest tube." He cooed rubbing her shoulder.

Ashtyn jerked when it was removed. "God that hurt." She grumbled rolling back over to her back after he placed a bandage onto her side.

"I know it does." He removed his gloves as a nurse discarded the tubing. "I'll give you a break before I start stabbing you with a needle." He teased trying to take her mind of the pain.

Ashtyn giggled softly. "Why that's very thoughtful." She joked glad that he wasn't being a jerk for her udder dislike of pain, and that chest tube hurt being removed.

"I swear some medical procedures are still incredibly barbaric in nature. I'm going to be honest with you, I'm good at taking blood but your veins are shot. Your arms are bruised so I might I have to stick you a couple of times." He warned trying to find a vein that wasn't rolling away from him.

"You can go ahead and get the blood, and that was barbaric." She was just glad he removed the tube and not Dr. Carter who probably went the extra step of giving her a very light sedative. "The nurses have stabbed me so many times I'm used to it." She said offering up her right arm which was significantly less bruised.

Robert pulled on another pair of gloves and felt for a vein her arms were all bruised from all the needle sticks and the blood thinners which made her susceptible to more bruising. "Little pinch." He cooed getting the needle on the first try.

"You actually got it?" She asked noticing her blood flowing into the tube, when the nurses did it they had to stab her several times. She hardly even felt the stick.

"Told you I was good." He winked. "Your veins are just tired and have a tendency to roll. It's because of all the needle sticks and all the medication. How's your pain today?"

"I didn't even feel it, will my veins go back to normal?' She questioned. "I'm in a lot of pain this morning more than yesterday. I also feel incredibly nauseous."

"Of course they will they just need a break from being constantly being stabbed at." He joked sticking the thermometer under her tongue. "If you had an infection you'd have a fever which you don't." He wrote down her vitals and everything else he did to the sweet blonde. "Go ahead and get some rest you had a rough morning. I'll have a nurse bring you some pain medication and something to help settle your stomach." He left the room with her chart underneath his arm as he made his way to Cuddy's office.

Ashtyn fluffed the pillow and drifted back into sleep dreaming of when she was younger and her mother actually cared about her.

"Morning Dr. Chase what can I help you with?" She asked taking a sip of coffee. "I'd assume it's not House related, otherwise he'd be bothering me himself."

"You remember my patient Ashtyn?" He asked the Dean.

"Yes her parent's removed you from the case, but you and I both know you've been sneaking into her room when her parents aren't around. What's going on with her?"

"Dr. Carter isn't using gloves, and started her on a Keflex drip claiming she had a surgical infection. I don't like him almost killing my patient, or him treating her like she's twelve and believing her parents."

"Thank you for letting me know I think it's time Dr. Carter had a little chat. Just don't get attached she might not feel the same way."

"You might not want to go in there this morning." A nurse said to Jessica and Peter. "She's had kind of a rough morning and she is in a lot of pain today."

"She's lying." Peter stated barging into the hospital room. "Wake up faker." He declared noticing that she was sleeping.

"I don't think you understand pain Mr. Drake. She had major heart surgery a couple of days ago. We also removed the chest tube, collected more blood, and she also had a severe allergic reaction to one of the medications Dr. Carter gave her. Let the poor girl sleep." The nurse said standing up for the sleeping young woman.

"Not my fault she had allergic reaction why should I care. The sooner she gets up and motivated the lower her medical bill is. Lord knows how much this hospital charges for tape. Wake up Ashtyn!"

"She isn't on your insurance and she will leave when the doctor's think she can leave. So let her sleep her morning was traumatic. Come back later this afternoon she shouldn't be awake later. Right now you need to leave so she can get the rest she needs to heal."

The two left as Ashtyn rolled over to face the nurse. "Thank you." She whispered grateful that the nurse cared.

"You need your rest and I didn't think you really wanted to deal with them. Go back to sleep, sweetie." The nurse hit the light and left the room.

Jessica paced the hospital room staring at her daughter. "Do you have any idea how hard we looked for you when you left?" Her mother asked. "We contacted university's looking for you. Alice and Thomas were no help and all along you were hanging out in the Ivy?" She had came back angry at her daughter she figured if she made it seemed like she cared about her daughter than she would come back home with her.

"Funny isn't it? You probably looked everywhere but not once did you bother to look at the Ivy Leagues? You probably thought I went to an SEC team since dad was from the south."

"You aren't the Ivy League type." Peter said to his step-daughter. "How did you even get into Princeton? Did you sleep with admissions person?"

"My 3.9 GPA says otherwise." She said rolling over to face the door. "I didn't sleep with anybody, how dare you accuse me of that." She growled falling asleep.

The rest of her time in the hospital was rather uneventful. She rolled over realizing it was the day she could go home. She walked to the bathroom and decided to take a shower since she couldn't really do that in the ICU and her bandages weren't waterproof so the nurses had to give her sponge baths. It felt nice the hot water easing her tired muscles.

"Ashtyn?" Her mother's panicked voice called out not finding her daughter in bed.

"In the shower." She called out staying under the warm water since it felt so great. She got out of the shower and changed into a pair of leggings and an oversized Princeton sweater. She couldn't wear a bra since the band rubbed against the surgical incision which kind of sucked but she did have a tank top underneath her sweater which kind of helped.

"Hurry up." Her mother shouted as Ashtyn shook her hair out. Since getting here her hair was pretty much always in a top knot it was nice having out of the knot for once. "We have a flight to catch."

"I told you I'm not coming to Indiana with you." She growled ever since Carter has told her that she needed to around the clock care for another week her mother saw it as her chance to drag Ashtyn back home.

"Don't back talk your mother. Dr. Carter told us that you needed adult supervision." Peter said tapping his foot oh her parents also got Robert off the case however he good about sneaking into her room and making the other doctor hasn't screwed up everything. Her parents couldn't stand the young doctor and she didn't feel like fighting over a doctor after all she now knew Dr. Robert Chase on a personal level and couldn't deny the developing feelings she had for him.

"I'm not coming with you. I have sisters who can take care of me. I could be transferred to an extended care facility before I come with you." She screamed tried of her parents at this point. Nothing had change since she had left her mother still made everyone about God and cancer. Peter was still an annoying preacher and her siblings did nothing but take the verbal abuse from the parents. "I'm staying in Jersey my life is here. I refuse to spend a week in Indiana. Besides if I know my mother she'd lock me in my room and I'd never see the light of day again. Besides you'd probably try and make me the church mouse and marry Luke. Sorry for having a brain and seeing past you're caring act. Not to mention Dr. Carter almost killed me." She said crossing her arms over her chest.

Peter walked across the room and smacked her hard knocking her to the floor. You will listen to us, she is your mother without her you wouldn't be here. So get your crap the plane leaves in an hour. Just remember there is more where that came from." He growled as the blonde doctor came rushing to Ashtyn's aide.

"You alright sweetie?" He asked noticing the handprint mark on her cheek. "That's going to leave a mark." He said gently helping her up from the floor as security hauled Peter away. "Care to fill me in on what happened?"

Ashtyn rubbed her cheek. "That jerk! We had a fight since I refuse to leave Jersey and he hauled off and smacked me because I actually have a brain."

"You bitch one of the bible quotes says to honor thy father and mother." Jessica said crossing her arms over her chest. "You haven't done any honoring us since we came at your insistence. You wanted us here remember."

"One Peter isn't my father, and two I'd honor you if you didn't treat me like crap. Not once have you asked me how I feel, how I've been, if I need anything. You have tried to guilt me to coming back to Indiana. I'm still enrolled in Princeton I've done the stuff I've missed. My GPA hasn't plummeted since winding up in the hospital. So I don't see the point in returning to Indiana there isn't anything there for me."

"You seem to forget that your father died of a drug overdose. Peter technically is your father so you should respect him. You aren't the easiest thing to deal with you are an ungrateful child not once have you ask how I am or if I'm cancer free so why should I care about your heart. It seems obvious all the drinking you do caused it."

"Since when did you go to medical school? I'll have a glass of wine every once in a while but I haven't drank myself into a bottle. Chase wouldn't I have liver issues if I did drink a ton?" She questioned looking at the actual doctor in the room.

"The LFT showed that your liver is perfect and there have been studied that show that wine is really good for your health. If you want since you are no longer my patient you could come stay with me for a week? I have a perfectly good guest room even though you are doing well you still need some observation by someone a little more reliable than a house of sorority girls and I have some of next week off." Robert suggested figuring it would be better than her parents taking her back home or her staying in a house full of fifty college girls.

"I don't want to impose." She said already loving the idea of staying with him for a week.

"You wouldn't be imposing." Robert said as Cuddy walked into the hospital room.

"Would someone like to explain to me what is going on?" She asked as two police officers flanked her sides. "A nurse said that your step-father smacked you?"

"He did I exercised my rights to stay in Jersey and he didn't seem to like that idea. I'm fine I just want to get back home and recuperate it's been a long week." She said crying her cheek still stinging from the slap.

"Would you like to press charges?" The police officer asked noticing the handprint covering her cheek. It was obvious she has been assaulted.

"Where do I sign?" She asked glaring at her mother as the police handed her a piece of paper and a pen after asking her for her side of the story.

"You wouldn't press charges, don't do this to your family." Jessica begged not knowing what she would do without her husband.

"He shouldn't have smacked me for not wanting to come home. I'm happy in Jersey I don't need my parents to take care of me for a week. I'm 22 and have been taking care of myself ever since my father died. I don't have to obey you or him. I make my own decisions and legally he smacked me that is assault. So why shouldn't I press charges? Because he's my step father sorry not going to happen." Ashtyn signed her name on the form. "I also don't want to see any of you for another four years."

Jessica stormed away leaving Ashtyn alone with the young doctor. "Why don't you call one of your sisters and have them meet me at my apartment." He whispered handing Ashtyn her phone. "That way neither will of us will get in trouble even though I'm technically not your doctor anymore."

"I'll text Brooklyn to come get me." She said folding up her pajamas and her tie blanket. "I need to make a detour to the sorority house and get some more pajamas, and I have a meeting which I can't miss." She typed out a quick text to Brooklyn.

"Why can't you miss it?" He asked after all today would be the first day outside the hospital in a week and even though he technically wasn't her doctor he didn't want her to overdo it and wind up back in the hospital.

"You don't miss a meeting unless you want to be on probation. It's mainly sitting around and talking anyway besides today is the pajama meeting which works out perfectly because I don't feel like breaking out the pencil skirt and heels." She giggled as Brooklyn walked into the room.

"Just be careful." He warned as Ashtyn signed the discharge papers.

"Don't worry doc I'll have her at your apartment at a decent hour and I'll watch her like a hawk." Brooklyn teased grabbing Ashtyn's overnight bag.

"I have your number I'll text you if I start feeling awful besides you still have work to finish."

"I will see you later tonight." He said as Brooklyn led Ashtyn off to the elevator.

"So you and the cute doctor?" She teased wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at the other girl.

"I wouldn't object if he decided to try anything I really do like him. I'm sure he just sees me as a patient and not as anything else."

"Oh please he has a serious case of heart eyes." Brooklyn teased leading Ashtyn over to her car. "After all he did offer to take care of you for a week."

Ashtyn turned the heat all the way up since she was freezing she blamed the blood thinners. "I'm freezing." She complained pulling the oversized sorority sweater over her hands. "I'm sure it was only because he didn't want me going home with Peter." She muttered rubbing her cheek.

"I can't believe that jerk smacked you. Do you need some concealer I imagine you don't want to be asked a million questions." She said handing over the tube of concealer.

"Thank you." Ashtyn said taking care of the red cheek with concealer and foundation as they pulled up to sorority house. She burrowed into her sweater wanting to burrow under a mass of blankets with a heater.

"Ashtyn!" A heard of girls screamed as she was passed from sister to sister.

"Easy please I did just have surgery and I'm still very sore and tired." She said ducking up to her room and putting on a thick hoodie and a pair of warm socks and went back down the stairs.

"Why do you look like you are going to Alaska?" One of the girls asked normally Ashtyn was in a tank top and lounge pants or whatever she had worn to cheer practice. She hardly ever dressed in layers around the sorority house and if she did it was a sweater.

"I've just been cold the past weekend." She said sitting down in her usual chair for the meeting she was after all president of public relations so she had to provide an update to the public aspect of the sorority since most people still saw sororities as the female version of a frat, and that couldn't have been more wrong. Ashtyn wrote down the important events into her planner and headed up to her bedroom that she shared with Brooklyn to pack for the week long stay with the hot doc.

Brooklyn tossed a small weekend bag into the bed. "Bring cute pajamas, and don't forget the protection." She said dangling a condom packet in front of Ashtyn who turned bright red.

"You can't be serious I just had heart surgery I highly doubt sex is on the table so soon after surgery one of the nurses said it could be six weeks before I even feel 100% and another two weeks before I even attend a cheer practice if the doctor even allows me to go back to cheerleading. So I don't think a lot of sex will be going on. It will probably be a lot of sleeping and homework on my end." Ashtyn said packing a pair of plaid pajamas and ones with anchors all over them. She had a thing for anchors seeing as how that was the mascot for Delta Gamma.

"Seriously eight weeks before you can get back to cheer!" Brooklyn complained if she were in Ashtyn's shoes she'd be going insane she hated staying still and she knew Ashtyn hated it too.

"If the cardiologist approves of it. I may have cheered my last game last Saturday. I might be hanging up my uniform prematurely. I've also seen some research that it could happen again and that I might not be able to have children due to the strain on my heart." Ashtyn said wanting to cry the research on the heart tumor was boring compared to the dissection.

"Honey I'm sure Dr. Hottie will have a lot more knowledge than some research on a website. Talk to him about it I'm sure he might have a second opinion, besides not everything on the Internet is true." Brooklyn soothed wanting Ashtyn to stop looking at the worst case scenario. She very much could have lost her best friend due to the dissection she could get over not being on the same field with the blonde if it meant she was still alive. "Come on grab your phone let's not make the cute doctor worry." She joked grabbing the bag from the bed.

"I know that not everything is true on the Internet its patient accounts on the subject. One person can't have children because of it. I might not ever get to be a mother or have sex." She huffed remembering one person complain they couldn't have sex.

"I highly doubt that's possible, that doesn't seem like a good life. Seriously isn't one of the main needs of the life pyramid procreating? What kind of life is it if you can't satisfy the most primal urge in fear of your heart tearing again? I highly doubt that is true." She said driving to Dr. Chase's apartment.

"I'd say I'd be a very boring life. Freud could argue that without sex we'd all go insane."

"Isn't that the same idiot who said girls wanted to sleep with their fathers, and that boys wanted to sleep with their mothers? I'd agree on the whole no sex equals insanity, but the whole parent thing is absurd." She said grabbing the bag out of the trunk. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Brooklyn joked as Ashtyn knocked at the door.

"Come on in." Robert said opening the door and grabbing the bag so Ashtyn didn't strain herself. "How was the sorority meeting?" He questioned giving her the quick tour of the apartment.

"I almost fell asleep." She said being completely honest his apartment was nice and clean. It was done in colors of black, grey and green. "So am I allowed to use the kitchen if I get a chocolate chip cookie craving at two in the morning?"

"Only if you save me some." He laughed watching her look around. "Why do I have the feeling you are silently judging my skills of interior design?"

"I'm not judging you have good taste." She said sitting down on the couch. "I have a somewhat dumb question for you, well several actually most of them are medical related."

"Well I have answers." He said sitting down on the couch next to her. "So what do you want to know?"

"You don't have a girlfriend do you? I don't want to anger your girlfriend for staying here." Ashtyn said tugging the sleeves of her sweater over her arms.

"I'm single so the only person you have to worry about is me. Are you cold I can always turn up the heat?" He suggested pulling the blanket off the back of the couch and draping it over her shoulders.

"I'm a little cold I've been cold since I woke up this morning." She wrapped the blanket around her feeling better knowing that he didn't have a girlfriend.

"It's the blood thinners they tend you make you cold and susceptible to bruising."

"I've done some research over the whole aortic dissection and some of the things I've read have worried me. I don't really like former patient accounts. I don't want to live in a bubble because of this dissection of have to watch everything I do in fear of something bad happening to my heart."

"Sweetie you had a very mild aortic dissection, but what are some of the things you have read to stay away from?" He asked sometimes he hated the Internet for the sole reason it made patients jump to conclusions and the Internet was never right nine times out of ten a patient would come in to the clinic stating they had cancer since the Internet told them it was cancer. The same thing could be said by patient accounts no case was exactly the same.

"Could I suffer another aortic dissection?" She questioned that was one of her main concerns was winding back underneath the scalpel.

"It could there is no guarantee that it won't dissect; but it's highly unlikely that it will ever dissect again."

"There was also an account where one person couldn't have children because of the added strain. Is that something I should avoid?" She asked picking at a fingernail.

"Ashtyn you had a very minor dissection you should be able to do everything that a normal person would do. You just have to visit a cardiologist yearly. So you can still have children, drink, have sex. You are free to do everything you did before surgery. Every patient is different besides you are a healthy and in your twenties. What works for you isn't going to work for a forty or a fifty year old. They might have had an underlying heart condition, besides the older you are it's harder to bounce back from surgery.

Nothing has to change you can still do anything that you want to do. Don't lock yourself in a bubble in fear of living your life. Your heart is fine now and soon you'll be doing everything you did before the dissection. Trust me when I say it was a very minor dissection and we probably could have treated it with medication, but at the time it was an emergency and you don't really have an idea until you see it up close."

Ashtyn let out a sigh of relieve that she didn't know she was holding. "Thank God I was starting to worry how boring life would be if I couldn't really do most of what I love."

"Nothing has to change because of the dissection. Want to help me with dinner?" He asked noticing it was around dinner time.

"I'll gladly help with dinner." She said getting up from the couch and following him into the kitchen. "Wait can you even cook?" She teased most of the guys she knew could burn water and lived on take-out.

"I can cook, I don't do it often since I work a lot and it's just easier to grab take-out on the way home from work, however when I do have the time I love to cook. Now how does pasta sound?" He asked.

"Out of fifty girls only thirty of us can cook, and only fifteen can make something taste edible and I'm not picky." She wasn't picky at all she would eat something at least once before deciding if she hated it or not.

"I'm not picky either, unless it has strawberries in it then I avoid it all costs since I am allergic to it." He said grabbing the necessary ingredients for bow-tie pasta.

"You're allergic to strawberries?" She questioned glad she wasn't allergic to food of any kind. She wasn't sure she could handle being allergic to chocolate or wine.

"I'm very allergic even the scent of strawberry could send me into anaphylactic shock." He said dumping the pasta into the boiling water. "So I try to avoid strawberries like the plague."

"I'm that way with bees. I've never heard of someone being allergic to strawberries before."

"It's really uncommon. So do you want a cheese sauce or meat sauce?" He questioned.

"Cheese sauce sounds better." She said since he gave her the choice of sauce.

"It does sound better can you get the cheese out of the fridge?"

"Sure." She grabbed the four cheeses and placed them onto the counter.

She watched as he melted the cheese and dish it up on the plates. "Dinner is served." He said handing her a plate.

"Thank you." She said sitting at the dining room table and digging in surprised at how good of a cook he was. The two ate in relative silence.

Ashtyn finished dinner and yawned. "I'll get the dishes." She said rubbing her eyes trying to fight off the sleepy feeling.

"No go onto bed, besides they just need to be tossed in the dishwasher. Don't forget to take your second dose of beta blockers, and blood thinners." He reminded tossing the dirty dishes into the dishwasher.

Ashtyn hopped into her anchor printed pajamas and took the required medication after brushing her teeth. She pulled back the top blanket and crawled into the bed adjusting the pillow the way she liked.

"Night, Ashtyn." Robert said making sure she was all settled in for the night.

"Goodnight, Robert." She called out not quite used to addressing him by his first name. She rolled over and snuggled the pillow falling fast asleep.

* * *

AN: Whoops well this is about a week late. I had trouble editing this chapter, but anyway enjoy and as always the next chapter should be up soon. :)


	4. This Kiss

AN: Don't own House M.D.

* * *

Sunlight trickled into the guest bedroom making the blonde toss and turn she finally decided to get out of bed and make something for breakfast. She toed on her panda ballet slippers and made her way to the kitchen to find something to cook. She ruffled through the cabinet finding a bag of chocolate chips figuring pancakes would probably be the best.

"Good morning." Robert said stumbling out of his bedroom hair sticking up everywhere. "What's for breakfast?" He teased smelling the pancakes.

"Chocolate chip pancakes and good morning." Ashtyn said being the morning person she was. "I would have made coffee but since I'm off caffeine for a while I didn't make any." She tossed the pancakes onto the plate and covered them with whip cream and chocolate syrup.

"Thank you for making breakfast." He said taking a bite after making himself coffee. "I really am sorry about the no coffee rule, but we don't you heart rate being affected by caffeine so soon after heart surgery same goes for energy drinks."

"I hate the rule but I know it's important to my health and I'm much too dependent on coffee anyway." She hated that she had to avoid coffee but she understood why she needed to avoid it for a while, it could send her heart into a weird rhythm which would put her back into the hospital.

"I wish all patients would understand that there was a reason we tell them not to do something. These are really delicious."

"I don't see the point in fighting over something as trivial as coffee, it's also only temporary." She muttered cleaning up the small mess in the kitchen. "Thank you all that I did was toss pancake mix into a bowl and added chocolate chips to the pancakes."

"So how do you feel today?" He questioned making sure she wasn't in a ton of pain.

"Really sore." She didn't see the point in lying to the young doctor. "Other than that I feel alright."

"Sore is to be expected, unfortunately." He heard his pager buzz on his hip. "Will you be alright for an hour?" He questioned figuring he could just dump her in House's office if she didn't want to stay alone.

"I should be I have a research paper to write." She said grabbing her laptop and her binder of research from the guest room and going to the dining room table.

"Well I guess I will leave you to the research paper." He said putting on a button down shirt and a pair of trousers not bothering with the tie.

Ashtyn grabbed a highlighter and opened the binder of research she was very organized when it came to research papers and this specific research paper was worth half of the final grade. She soon got bored and went to look at medical schools. She had already taken the MCAT and all of the requirements all that she had to do was get the MCAT scores which should have been up later today or sometime this week.

Robert came back about two hours later. "Still doing research?" He questioned watching the pretty blonde chew on her bottom lip in thought.

"Yes can you help it's over mental illness?"

"Sure show me what you have so far." He said as she slid the laptop over. He was impressed her research and argument was methodical over why mental illness was often overlooked and why it should be seen as something important since it was after all an illness and they can't help it.

"You make my papers in undergrad look like a high schooler wrote it." He teased this paper was easily in a graduate tier, if she did decided to go to grad school she could easily change some of it around and use it as a dissertation.

"So it's good?" She asked making sure it was the required seven pages since the professor was a stickler for that he would fail you if it wasn't the required length.

Ashtyn was developing feelings for the young doctor, feelings she probably shouldn't have. She found herself staring at his lips when she moved involuntarily and kissed him. "I'm am so sorry I have idea what came over me." She said as he stared at her watching her get all flustered. She felt like an idiot for kissing him she didn't even understand why she did it.

"I think I have a general idea." He said pulling her into his strong arms deepening the kiss between them. "I feel the same way." He felt relieved that she made the first move he found himself staring at her trying to make his move. He just didn't want to seem creepy by making the first move. It was nice knowing how she felt about him so he was no longer left wondering if she had the same feelings he did.

"You do?" She gasped tangling her fingers into his soft blonde hair deepening the kiss between the two of them.

"What's not to like? Your smart, sweet, and you have a great personality." He trailed his hands to the small of her back. "Besides I'm no longer on your case, so a board of ethics would find nothing wrong."

"You are older than me." She pointed out figuring he was probably in his early thirties and she was still in her early twenties.

"I'm twenty-seven to be exact so there is about a five year age difference. It's not like you are in high school you are about ready to graduate college." He said breaking away from the kiss breathless.

"I was thinking you were thirty." She remarked shutting the laptop suddenly very uninterested with the paper.

"Nope still in my twenties at least for a couple more years." He said watching the blonde yawn. "Tired why don't we take a nap." He suggested after all he did have a week of relaxing.

"Yeah I'm tired." She said heading back to the guest room.

"My bed is big enough for the both of us, besides how do we go from kissing to opposite ends of the apartment? Let's share a bed I promise I won't try anything."

Ashtyn smiled softly and followed him to the bedroom surprised that he had the exact same feelings she had. She kicked off her slippers and crawled onto the left side since the right side was rumpled she personally didn't care which side she slept on.

Robert pulled her small frame into his arms, despite his great looks he didn't live up to the reputation the nurses though he had of being a playboy. He was very much the relationship type not to bring a girl home and screw her sister the next night. He just wasn't that type of person.

Ashtyn snuggled into his embracing, she felt safe and protected something that she hadn't felt since her father pasted away. Sure she had her sorority sisters and her cheer friends but she had put up a wall between her and relationships and Robert had managed to break the wall down. She smiled softly as he traced circles on her hip. She quickly fell asleep in his arms as did he.

Ashtyn's phone rang which woke both of them up. "Sorry." Ashtyn said rolling over to check her phone and then bolted to her computer since the MCAT scores were posted.

"Is there a reason you bolted out of bed like your ass was on fire?" He questioned leaning against the doorframe.

"The MCAT scores were posted." She said typing in her login information. "Brooklyn was curious as to what I made."

Robert looked at her strangely. "When did you take the MCAT?"

"Summer break." She said jumping up and down seeing her score like an excited energizer bunny. "Yes." She said happy tears pooling into her eyes.

"I take it you did well?" He said seeing her jumping up and down like an excited five year old on Christmas Day.

"I made a forty out of forty-five on it." She screamed surprised she did so well she was expecting something in the thirties.

"That's awesome." Robert said hugging her tightly, she had mentioned medical school during one of their late night talks but he had no idea she has taken the MCAT. He did decently on his MCAT enough to get into the University of Sydney and to do his residency in Melbourne.

"I was expecting something in the thirties. I'm not really a science major like most pre-meds." She said still in awe of the score.

"I'm proud of you the MCAT is no easy test. So where are you planning to apply?" He questioned noticing it was almost dinner time and he was kind of hungry. "What sounds good for dinner, tacos or burgers?" He questioned making a note to run to the store since his cabinets were looking bare unless it was considered junk food.

"I'd really like to stay in Princeton or somewhere close, like Columbia or UPenn and tacos sound great."

Robert grabbed the meat from the fridge and tossed it into a pan. "What about Stanford or UCLA both have an excellent med programs?"

"I just really like the east coast, and most of my friends who plan on going to grad school are staying around the east coast area, I know in med school I won't have time to do much of anything besides study, but I'd be nice knowing Brooklyn and the others are only a car trip away." She said chopping up the tomatoes and onions.

"You will have time in med school for other things it's just how you balance time. Besides once into medical school it's no longer I have to have the highest GPA for residency, in fact most medical schools are turning away from letter grades to pass/fail. The hardest part of medical school is first year, yet fourth year is considered the most stressful with thoughts of residency."

"I just can't believe I actually made a forty." She said wanting to cry out of excitement, granted such a high score wasn't a necessary yes that she would be accepted.

"You are smart, Ash." He said he might not have knew her very long but from what he could tell she was a very determined person, after all he had met her family. He felt very proud of her even if they weren't officially a couple.

"The sorority girls are already planning a huge party for those of us that got the MCAT and LSAT's results. Wait would being a sorority member hurt me with medical school applications?" She asked curious if being a sorority girl would hurt her. She knew movies deeply stereotyped Greek life and made them seem like it was all toga's and beer.

"Probably not neither will cheerleading it shows you are a team player. However get used to the statement you are much too cute to be a doctor, or you are pretty shouldn't you be dumb? I don't know how many times I've had those questions."

"Brooklyn jokes that I'm like the Elle Woods of medicine." Ashtyn said adding the cut lettuce to the plate.

"Elle Woods?" Robert questioned staring at the blonde wondering what she was talking about.

"You've never seen Legally Blonde?" She asked if was like a sorority cult movie or at least in her house it was. Most of the girls could quote most of the movie. If she was being truly honest she could too.

"I don't believe I have."

"Well let's remedy that." She suggested tossing the taco shells into the microwave to warm them up.

The two fixed up the tacos and headed into the living room as Ashtyn pulled up the movie up on Netflix. "Fun fact the sorority is based on Delta Gamma." They finished up the tacos and he pulled her into his arms.

Robert had to roll his eyes at some of the more cheesy parts but he did see some similar characteristics between the two and it wasn't a terrible movie for what it was. "So is that honestly how sorority girls dress and act?" He questioned finding some of the other characters to be one dimensional.

"No we do not dress in bright pink business attire and it kind of depends on the university. I personally would never wear a hot pink skirt suit. I like pink but that's just too much pink." She said giggling softly as he played with her hair. "I just hope my grades are good enough."

"Why wouldn't they be good enough? Did you fail a medical school requirement?" He questioned he honestly didn't understand the point of some of the med school requirements he had yet to really need that calculus class he took sophomore year of undergrad.

"I made a B in physics and I believe my total GPA is a 3.9, but I just feel the B could have been an A." She was very hard on herself about her grades.

"I made a C in statistics so if I can get into medical school I'm pretty sure the B in physics is nothing as long as you have extracurricular and volunteer work and a great MCAT score you should be golden, don't stress over the application process."

Ashtyn smiled and kissed him as the door was opened and the two of them sprung apart.

"House seriously! I assume you have a reason for being here in my apartment." He said looking over at Ashtyn who looked like she had seen a ghost.

"You really need time off to shove your tongue down a former patient's throat? I have a problem that the other idiots can't fix."

"What makes you think I'm any smarter?" Chase questioned looking at his boss ignoring his snide comments.

"Because you have more accurate diagnosis's than the other two combined. Now what would cause a ten year old to have a heart attack and be extremely overweight?"

"Metabolic X, Cushing Syndrome. Can I at least see the chart?" He questioned as House tossed the chart. "Cushing Syndrome makes more sense. Now can I please get back to my vacation?"

"I knew this would happen with the two of you getting together, and yes you are right."

"Can you please go?" Chase begged seeing Ashtyn yawn. "It's getting late and I expect double overtime for you bugging me on my time off."

Ashtyn snickered and headed to the guest bathroom to get ready for bed.

"Why pay you double overtime when your father is Rowan Chase, I pretty sure we could pay you a dollar an hour and you wouldn't be hurting." House remarked leaving the apartment.

Ashtyn came out hair up in a top knot. "How do you put up with him?" She questioned going back to kissing him since that's all they really could do.

"He's honestly not that bad once you get to know him. He's like a toothache you almost miss it." He teased honestly he didn't hate House did he hate the offhanded comments that were mean, of course he did, but House was a really good doctor and he enjoyed the challenge.

"I don't think I've ever almost missed a toothache but alright." She laughed thinking of House as a toothache. "So what are your family's specialties? She asked remembering they were all doctors.

"My older brother is an ER doctor that deals with venomous bites. My step-mother is an ob/gyn. My father is a rheumatologist. Holiday dinners are never boring." He teased kissing her hair. "Can I asked about Luke? I overheard your mother saying that you should still be with Luke."

Ashtyn sighed and looked at Robert. "I guess I will tell you, my mother and step-father tried arranging a marriage between me and this guy from our church who was going to seminary school and he needed to be married so they tried to pawn me off to him. However I was never going to walk down the aisle. I pretended that the marriage was going to happen all while sneaking off to spend time with Aunt Alice and Uncle Thomas figuring out what college I was going to attend. I graduated and the night before the wedding I snuck out of the house and came to Princeton for summer cheerleading camp. I refused to get married to a man exactly like Peter. If I am getting married it will be to the guy I want to marry and it will be on my own terms."

"Your parents tried to force you into an arranged marriage? That has to be the worst thing I've ever heard." Robert said wondering why some parents were so terrible. Sure his father left and his actual mother drank herself to the grave, but he and his father made up and his step-mother welcomed him with open arms; but his parents never tried to arrange a marriage or prevent him from going to college. Everyone thought that Rowan had made him go to medical school but he actually went to medical school on his own free will. His father didn't even know until his medical school graduation/

"My parents are terrible or at least my step-father is. It was his bright idea my mother used to be fun and carefree might explain why none of her children are from the same man. I'm over it I've moved on from them and am happy without them. I still keep in contact with my father's family but not that side of the family. I almost called my aunt to pass as my mother so I didn't have to listen to your call the parents lecture, but I had kind had hope they had changed in four years which was stupid."

Robert hugged her tightly. "It wasn't stupid you hoped they had changed which they didn't. I shouldn't have made you call them." He said feeling partly responsible for what had happened.

"You had no way of knowing what they had done or would do. I had hoped the finally cared. They hate me for having a brain of my own and for leaving. How about we go to bed I'm tired." She suggested tired of talking about her awful parents.

"Let's go to bed I'm sure tomorrow I will have to answer to Cuddy so might as well enjoy my last night of freedom." He teased knowing House it was already common knowledge that he had his tongue down a former patient's throat.

"How is this wrong? Technically you aren't my doctor, so you can't get in trouble." She suggested sliding into bed.

"I could still get in trouble, depends what Cuddy's mood is that is if she calls. Granted my boss doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut." He said tracing circles onto her hip.

"So could you get fired?" She questioned not wanting to cause something huge like that.

"Not unless she takes it to the board. I'll probably get a month of straight clinic duty or something along those lines. No surgical privileges for a week, nothing to completely unreasonable." At least he hoped she wasn't being unreasonable.

Ashtyn fell asleep snuggled into his side and didn't wake up until his phone went off. She rolled over to her phone and saw that Brooklyn and Tiffany wanted to get lunch. "Mind if I sneak out a get lunch with a couple of friends?"

"Go ahead I have a meeting with Cuddy since House can't keep his mouth shut. Just try not to overdo yourself." He said hopping into the shower as she went to guest bedroom to get ready. She pulled on a pair of jeans, a white blouse, with a pink sweater over it and a pair of brown riding boots. She pulled her hair out of its knot and curled it along with applying makeup. She felt more and more like herself with each passing day. She wasn't ready for the top of a cheer pyramid but she could at least handle work or school.

Chase hobbled into a pair of trousers as Ashtyn walked back into the bedroom and grabbed her phone. "You look nice." He said used to seeing her in pajamas and oversized sweaters.

"Thank you." She said tying his tie for him. "You don't look to bad either. I will see you later." She placed a soft kiss on his lips and trotted out the door.

Robert looked down at his tie and grabbed a blazer in case it was a matter of the board. He grabbed his wallet, badge, and phone and stuck them in the pockets and he went out to his car.

"Ashtyn." Tiffany said seeing the blonde slide into the car. "So did you get permission or sneak out of a window. The brunette joked. "How are things going with the hot doc?"

"I got permission and things are going quite well with the hot doc like really good." She winked. "So what's for lunch?" She questioned since her and Chase had slept through breakfast.

"Panera Bread if that's all right with you. Now what is going on with you and the hot doc?" Tiffany questioned turning to look at the blonde.

"We've kissed and snuggled, but haven't really talked about what is going on between us and sounds great." She answered looking down at her phone.

"You've kissed so that's something." Brooklyn said turning into the parking lot.

Robert walked into Cuddy's office. "Good morning." He said sitting down in one of her office chairs.

"Hello Dr. Chase so let's discuss what is going on with you and a former patient. I guess I should ask what is going on between you two." She asked leaning against the desk.

"Ashtyn and I haven't really talked about what's going on with us. Do I like her of course I like her? I don't know what you want me to say my feelings didn't get in the way while she was a patient here and technically I'm no longer her doctor and I didn't do anything ethically wrong. So what is my punishment?" He questioned meeting the eyes of his boss. He knew that she was seeing House behind everyone's back so he could always use that to his advantage if she tried to reporting him to the ethics board.

"Two weeks in the NICU and two added clinic hours." She said shutting his file. "Don't let the relationship turn sour or get in the way of your job. I wish you two the best of luck." She said sending him on his way to the clinic.

Ashtyn ordered a Mediterranean salmon salad and lemonade and made her way to the outdoor sitting area. "So ladies what about a winter wonderland themed winter formal?" She suggest since Tiffany was event planner however Ashtyn helped since it was sort of public related.

"I was thinking of that too." Tiffany said taking a bite of her sandwich. "So I need ideas for sisterhood events."

"Laser tag, movie night in our pajamas, camping, parents weekend, mud run, a cooking class." Ashtyn suggested eating her salad.

"Ashtyn do you really want your mom at parents weekend?" Brooklyn suggested knowing the full story of her past.

"Who said I'd invite Jessica and Peter? I'd invite my aunt and uncle nobody would know the difference. We could have like a mother-daughter tea and father-daughter sporting events. We'd get sister bonding and get to see our family which something like that could help show our parents that it's not all mixers and drinking. We have roughly 15 sisterhood events in a semester it'd be something different."

"Would you be okay with something like that though?" Tiffany said adding the idea to her phone but first making sure Ashtyn could do an event like that.

"I'll have my father's family besides my aunt is a former sorority sister so it'd be fun having her around for a weekend. I'll be just fine besides I have you two and Meg so I'll be just fine. I think October would be perfect like a couple weeks before Halloween, after all we do have Kappa's annual Halloween party to attend."

"I'll bring it up to the sorority president." Tiffany said having tons of sisterhood events in her notebook along with a general idea of their winter formal. "You have great ideas, now do you have any public event ideas?"

"I was thinking for our volunteering we could do animal shelters, woman shelters, veteran shelters." She suggested volunteering was a huge part of their organization and it was something they loved doing. "Why I'm off I'll do some calling and talk with the sorority president for days that work for all of us."

Tiffany's cell phone beeped. "Good news winter wonderland formal and Mom's and Dad weekend is a go." She announced after finishing her lunch. "Now to find dates that work for everyone and coming up with a schedule for sisterhood events."

"I need to do the same with the volunteering schedule." They only needed to get a certain number of volunteering hours, but Ashtyn had to go to all since she was the public relations president which didn't really bother her it also would look really good on her medical school application.

"So what do you girls want to do after I'm free the rest of the day." Brooklyn asked glad that Ashtyn seemed to be doing much better and seemed to be more active.

"We could get our nails done or go shopping for winter formal." Tiffany suggested noticing the nail salon and winter formal was always held in December so they had a little more than three months to find a dress.

"How about both, Robert has to work until seven tonight so you have me until then."

"Sounds like a plan." Brooklyn said tossing her trash in the bin and heading back to her car and driving the short distance to the mall. "So long dresses or short?"

"I'm thinking long for winter and short for spring." Ashtyn said heading into the Nordstrom and into the dress section. "Silver or is that too stereotypical?" She asked holding a strapless silver dress with a slit.

"I like it." Tiffany said grabbing two short navy blue dresses.

Brooklyn grabbed a long laced white dress and a short one. "To think this will be one of our last formals before grad school. I'll be in law, Tiff will be in business, and Ashtyn will be in med school. So do you know where you want to go?"

"I plan on applying to UPenn, Princeton, NYU, Columbia, and Hopkins. So where are you applying to?" She asked the other two she had already posted her application to the AMCAS which was then sent to the university's that she had just rattled off. She would of course apply to some of the not as greatly ranked medical schools but those were the ones she tackled while Robert slept last night.

"Yale, Georgetown, NYU, Princeton, and Columbia." Brooklyn said heading into the fitting room.

"UPenn, Princeton, NYU, Cornell." Tiffany answered glad that they weren't all that far away and they all had NYU and Princeton in common. The farthest one being Georgetown which was three hours away. "I like how none of us are even tempted of California." She teased.

"I'd be distracted by the beach." Brooklyn said coming out in the short lace dress with a little sparkle. "Ashtyn I love that dress on you."

Ashtyn had a little difficulty getting into dress with the stitches and bandages but the dress was perfect the slit went a little above her knee and looked absolutely gorgeous. "Brook you are buying that dress, it's perfect."

"Only if you are buying the one you currently have on." She retorted ducking back into the fitting room to change coming out with the lace white dress slung over her arm.

"I plan to you guys can't see the stitches can you?" Ashtyn asked feeling self-conscious of the incision in between her breasts. She went back into the fitting room and changing out of the dress being extra careful of the bandages and stitches last thing she wanted was to rip a stitch. Now all that she had to do was find shoes and a date, however she already had an idea for one of those. She shimmied back into her jeans and grabbed the long silver dress and her purse and left the fitting room. "How's it coming Tiff?"

"I don't like either of them. Ashtyn you work at a Nordstrom help me." She said hating the past three dresses she has tried on. "You can see just the tiny bit of bandages but who gives a crap about that. We are just glad we still have our Ashtyn."

Ashtyn noticed a short navy blue dress that faded into white, it also has a rhinestone belt which would look great on Tiffany. "How about this one?"

"It's different." She said she didn't hate it, but she wasn't sure how she felt seeing it on the hanger. She tried the dress on instantly loving it. "Oh yeah this is the one." She came out of the dressing room dress slung over her arm. "I didn't think I would like it."

"Sometimes dresses look better on than they do than on the hanger." Ashtyn handed them the friends and family benefit card, and she fished her employee benefit card out of her wallet. The dresses were packed in a garment bag as they paid.

"How you feeling, Ash? Want to find shoes or no." Brooklyn asked not wanting her to overdo it and wind up back in the hospital.

"No I don't think I could handle shoe shopping, dress shopping, and getting my nails done. I'm still not 100% I'm only about 85%."

"That's perfectly fine let's just get our nails done, we have the dress and that is the most important part anyway." Tiffany knew it would be a while before Ashtyn could do long shopping trips and it was only the third day out of the hospital. She was surprised the blonde was doing so great already. She had done her research on aortic dissections and it was really a difficult thing to heal from. "I'm just glad that you are doing better." She remembered visiting on the second day and her friend looked like death warmed over.

"We will be barefoot by the end of the night anyway." Brooklyn joked shoes for formal tended to only be comfortable for dinner and once it came time to dance nobody had shoes because booze, heels, and dancing tended to not go well together.

"Blame the wine." Ashtyn joked sticking her cards back into her wallet which was tossed into her purse.

"It's always wine with you." The other two joked knowing that if Ashtyn decided to drink it was going to be wine not that she ever drank a lot or often. They just loved to tease her of her allegiance to wine.

"Of course it is at least it tastes good." She remarked heading out to Brooklyn's car and they placed the dresses in the trunk so they didn't get wrinkled. "Let's go get our nails done since my nails look awful." She complained she spent most of last week picking at her nails out of boredom.

"Not to mention you are kind of due for some papering and don't feel bad my nails look awful too." Tiffany said as Brooklyn drove to the nail bar downtown. Ashtyn was terrified of nail salons after seeing a special over infections after pedicures two years ago. So the sorority girls were good about going to licensed nail spas. So they always went to the same place in fear of getting a nasty infection.

"Hello Ashtyn, Brooklyn, and Tiffany, you're usual." The desk lady greater they tended to get their nails done every couple weeks and they had been coming to Princess Nails since the begging of freshman year. The nail bar had a royal theme to it with high back pedicure chairs that resembled a throne.

"Hello Angela, and yes our usual mani and pedi." Brooklyn said picking at the remaining baby pink polish on her nails.

"Sophia, Bianca, and Grace are just finishing up, so have a seat and I'll bring you guys some water."

Ashtyn sat on the leather sectional that took up most of the lobby and waited for the nail tech she scrunched up the arms of her cardigan and Tiffany grabbed her arm. "You look like a drug addict." She said referring to the bruises and needle marks in the blonde's arm.

"I know I look like a drug addict, but I'm not blame the nurses." Robert had done the initial work up and he was gentle the nurse who did the previous blood draw and the other two IV'a not so much. Her arm was black and blue and she looked like her father the month before the drug overdose.

"Ashtyn it's been a while." Bianca said grabbing the blonde and bringing her back to the station.

"Hey Bianca." She said seeing the short Italian lady leaning up against the doorframe. "It has I've just been really busy." She lied taking a seat in the pedicure station after kicking off her boots and socks.

"You're always busy, do you even know how to sleep?" She teased Ashtyn had been coming to her for about four years so she had gotten to know the blonde quite well.

"I get a decent amount of sleep in a night. My class schedule is actually light compared to last year I mainly have psych courses which are a walk in the park compared to statistics."

"You need to relax and enjoy life for once stop stressing about your future." Bianca said watching Ashtyn sink into the massage chair. "So how's cheerleading?"

"It's going alright." She said and cheerleading was going alright until the sudden detour to the hospital so for all she knew it was alright. Brooklyn was feeding her information if something in the routine changed.

"Still single, I have a friend who would love to meet you?"

"She's not for once." Tiffany joked tapping her sister's shoulder. "Strange isn't it."

"That's great!" Bianca exclaimed looking at the younger blonde.

"She's seeing a doctor who looks like a damn model. Speaking of which I don't suppose he has a single brother you could set me up with." Tiffany teased she liked being single.

"He has brothers but they are older than him." Ashtyn said remembering that night in the hospital she questioned.

"Probably married if they look anything like him." Tiffany joked sinking into the pedicure chair.

Ashtyn listened to the latest sorority house gossip of who dating who, who stumbled out of a frat boy's bedroom among other things. She really wasn't a fan of gossip but she added her points in and pretended she cared that Kara was spotted with Daniel.

"So your usual pink color?" Bianca questioned holding up the bottle of nail polish.

"Yes please." Ashtyn answered she preferred the lighter colors of polish however now that it was getting more into fall she could get away with darker colors.

Bianca helped Ashtyn over to the manicure spot so she didn't chip the toenails. "Ouch what happened?" She asked noticing the bruises and needle marks over the blonde's arms.

"Ruptured appendix." She lied sitting down and being careful not to stub her toes. "No big deal I'm fine anyway."

"Ouch that does not sound fun. So the usual French our something different?"

"Let's go with a wine color this time." She said in the mood for something darker.

The ladies left the nail salon and dropped Ashtyn back off at the apartment. She grabbed the spare key he handed her this morning and she kicked off the jeans and hopped into the shower. She wrapped the towel around her torso tucking the end into her side as she applied a deep conditioner to her hair. She changed into an oversized sweater and a pair of lounge shorts. She went to kitchen to find something to cook up for dinner. There was chicken and a lime so she decided to make cilantro lime rice chicken.

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Thank you all for reading this story I love seeing all the alerts and reviews :) Alright to clear up a couple of questions this story starts in the first season but is set in current times and somethings might stay the same like Vogler and Tritter a lot of it is going to be different. Obviously Robert and Allison aren't going to hook up. I have a plan for her actually. I know some of you might think Robert is slightly out of character but try to think of first season Robert. He didn't turn into a womanizer until Cameron divorced him. So this is how I saw him first season same with the other characters.

I will see you all next chapter where we delve more into Ashtyn's back history and we learn what really what happened to her father.


	5. Cannonball

Fair warning this is a long chapter. So you might want to grab some popcorn and a drink ;)

As usual I sadly didn't create House M.D.

TW: Mentions of previous abuse

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Robert walked into the door kicking off his shoes greeted by the smell of fresh citrus. "Something smells good." He said heading to the bedroom and changing into a pair of lounge pants and an old tee shirt.

"Thanks we are having grilled chicken with rice topped with cilantro and lime with a chili lime sauce. So how bad was the punishment?" She questioned stirring the sauce.

"Two weeks in the NICU which always could be worse. She tried making it a month but I pointed out that her seeing House is ethically wrong on her part." He said watching her cut up the grilled chicken and toss it into the lime sauce. It was strange but he liked watching her cook he just hoped it was as good as the pancakes. "So how was your day with Brooklyn and Tiffany?"

"That doesn't sound all that bad and we had lunch went shopping for winter formal and got our nails done." She tossed the rice into the sauce and placed it on plates. "Dinner is ready, I also made cupcakes which are in the oven."

Robert took his plate over to the small dining nook after grabbing a water from the fridge. "Sounds like a productive day. We really need to talk about what this is between us." He took a small bite of food which tasted wonderful all the flavored blended well together.

"So what is this between us?" She asked taking a sip of water biting her bottom lip.

Robert looked at Ashtyn trying to figure out what exactly this was. What started as her staying with him for a week while she healed had turned into something not so innocent. It wasn't a relationship quite yet he had feelings but they hadn't even had a date yet. "How about we go out for dinner tomorrow in celebration of your MCAT score and get to know each other better." He knew a lot about the blonde but they hadn't even been on a date despite having kissed and shared a bed.

"So a date?" She questioned knowing full well that is exactly what he was suggesting.

"Of course it's a date." He said going to kitchen and getting seconds. "You are a really good cook."

"Thanks but my uncle and father should be getting that credit." She giggled softly to herself. Her father and uncle had a successful steakhouse in Indianapolis and taught her most of what she knew. When her father died she inherited his shares of the restaurant and he also left a nice nest egg for college and her aunt took care of most of the expensive things with the sorority she also had set aside a college fund for her niece. Ashtyn also had an impressive educational and athletic scholarship which took care of everything but food. So her undergrad education was paid for without needing student loans or the nest egg her father had saved for her. She was saving that for medical school to avoid student loans. She didn't really want to be in debt until she was forty.

"So what does your uncle do since he taught you to cook?"

"He is owner of a steakhouse in Indianapolis. He and my dad opened it when I was six and I kind of grew up cooking. It's something I've always loved to do." She said finishing up her dinner having thoughts of her childhood of her father teaching her how to bake cupcakes as they had a fight with flour. She smiled thinking of the happy memory both of them were a mess. "I remember a time they tried teaching me to bake cupcakes and we ended up covered in flour."

Robert laughed thinking of a younger Ashtyn with flour in her hair. "It sounded like you two were very close."

"We were until my mother met Peter." She sighed thinking of the evil man who drove her father to drinking a drugs.

"So is he the cause of his death?" Robert wondering curious what had happened and how they can go to throwing flour to Ashtyn losing her father.

Ashtyn just nodded her head excusing herself to go to the guest room to cry. She remembered the first time she had met Peter he seemed so good for her mother, but then things changed and he wasn't the man any of them thought he was. Then Jessica got diagnosed with cancer and her home turned into hell. She wasn't allowed to go anywhere but to school or church. She scrolled through her phone finding a picture of her and her father the day she graduated middle school it was the last good picture she had of the two of them.

"Ashtyn sweetie are you alright?" He asked knocking on the door, knowing how hard those memories were. He had his own set of them with his mother who had turned to the bottle. The moment Rowan left his mother turned to the bottle despite having him and his younger siblings. He was left to take care of his mother who ended up dying because her liver had failed. He ended up hating his mother after he still kind of hated her since she would rather die than have a liver transplant. It was only during medical school graduation that he learned to forgive his father for walking out. Things turned better after that he still resented his father a little but the good outweighed the bad. He knew how bad it hurt losing his mother he always called in sick the day she died. So he knew exactly how Ashtyn probably felt. It still hurt to talk about his mother.

She unlocked the door and he found her on the bed sobbing. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to make you upset." He cooed gently rubbing her back.

"You didn't he might have died six years ago but it still kind of hurts especially if I talk about him. If Peter and Jessica hadn't gotten custody or forbid me from visiting he'd still be here." She knew deep down that he would be so proud of her. "Thomas and Jana tried getting custody of me afterward but I went right back to hell. Things only got worse after his death with the forced marriage, the no college rule, they tried preventing me from graduating high school they tried removing all traces of him from my life banning me from seeing Alice, Thomas, Jana, and my cousins." It was also during that time that she was severely depressed.

Robert just hugged her tightly he still had memories of watching his mother die of liver failure. To this day he still had a hard time feeling sorry for alcoholics who drank them self to death. He could only imagine how Ashtyn felt about drug abusers. All physicians had something that bothered them that they wanted to refuse to treat. "Why couldn't your uncle get custody surely he was better than a mother with cancer and an abusive step-father?" He questioned rubbing soothing circles on her thigh. Most guys probably thought the blonde was damaged goods with a terrible past, he too was damaged goods in a way. He knew both needed each other it was obvious Ashtyn still had a lot bottled up underneath the surface and it was nice knowing some else knew how hard the dead parent struggle was especially when that parent caused it themselves.

"I have no clue why Thomas couldn't become my legal guardian. He's more a father figure than Peter. Wait how'd you know he was abusive?" She questioned.

"You didn't even flinch when he smacked you and Jessica didn't even move so it seemed like it had happened before since nobody made a move to check on you. Emily and Jessica almost seemed relieved it wasn't them. Your bother tried to help he just didn't want to be on the other end of it. Both of your parents are verbally abusive for using terms like bitch and slut which you aren't." He might not have came from an abusive family but his mother wasn't the nicest when she was drunk; but she had never hit him or his sister. He had just seen abuse from his ER and Psych rotation in medical school.

"It's nice for someone to finally realize what an ass Peter truly is. Thomas could tell something was happening but he couldn't really do anything besides fight for custody. It's one of the reasons I wanted to study psychology, however I couldn't be a counselor. I realized it before I left for college so I also decided to do medical school requirements. I've also had trust issues with past relationships. Your kind of the first guy I've told who's managed to get past my ice queen exterior. You probably think I'm insane or damaged goods. I'd understand if you decided to decline our date." She hoped he didn't.

"Why would I do that?" Robert questioned he really did like Ashtyn and he realized just how strong she was. He didn't care if she was a rich girl from The Upper East Side of New York City or the girl with a nasty past. He was slowly falling for the blonde which is something he hadn't done in a while which was actually have strong feelings for someone. Most ladies only liked him for his looks and he wanted someone who liked him and not just his pretty face and large paycheck and he could see right past them. Ashtyn was different she had actually bothered to get to know him and saw him as more than just pretty.

"Because I'm damaged and most guys see an ice queen and I have huge trust issues."

"I can deal with trust issues and you are not damaged." He said soothing he would do anything for the beautiful blonde and if that meant helping her with the trust issues and showing her not all guys were assholes then he would. It was nice having someone not so vapid. "Can you deal with my hours of work?" He questioned that was a big cause for most of his breakups.

"Not a problem." She said drying her tears and smiling at him. If he could handle her trust issues she could deal with his long hours at work, besides that would be here once medical school was over. She laid her hand on his chest as he stroked her hair falling into a deep sleep.

Ashtyn woke up her eyes feeling crusty the events of last night hitting her like a freight train she was normally composed and didn't let things out. It felt nice it felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Thomas and Alice knew that Peter was abusive but now she had told someone else who didn't react like it was her fault. Not even her sorority sisters knew about her past. Brooklyn knew a bit more than the others as did Tiffany.

"Good morning sweetie, how do you feel?" He questioned realizing they had fallen asleep in the guest bedroom.

"Heart wise I feel great, emotionally I feel relieved that someone else knows and I don't have to hide it." She said sitting up and stretching. "Can I please go back to class I only have one class today and it's been a week and a half since surgery. I'm starting to miss Professor Allen's lectures and I normally hate his monotone lectures.

Robert wanted to say know, but at the same time he figured enough time had passed that she could be on her own. "Only after I check the incision and make sure your vitals are normal. What class do you have?" He knew if she was missing a monotone professor it was time for her to get back to a somewhat normal routine.

"Alright." She sighed figuring he would insist in making sure she was fine. "It's a Human Sexuality class."

"Sound's interesting." He said feeling for her radial pulse and looking at his watch. "85 beats per minute that is way better then when I first met you." He joked wrapping the blood pressure monitor around her upper arm.

"That's much less worrisome."

"It is indeed, and your blood pressure is perfect. 100/70. I need you to lift your shirt." He said knowing that would be slightly awkward.

Ashtyn blushed slightly but pulled up her shirt adverting his gaze. Robert removed the bandage covering the incision which was still pink and stitched closed. "The stitched should be able to be removed later tonight and you can go to class."

"What about the bra?" She questioned not wanting to go to class without the support.

"It shouldn't bother the incision since your skin is mostly healed. Go get ready for school I'm sure your girls miss you."

Ashtyn slid off the bed after adjusting her shirt still slightly red and hopped in the shower. She blow dried and curled her hair actually bothering to do something with it since getting out of the hospital. She shimmied into a pair of skinny jeans, a purple peplum blouse and a pair of dark brown riding boots. She applied her makeup and grabbed her school bag.

"You're going to want these." Robert said coming out of his bedroom tossing her car keys her way. "I will see you at six for our date."

Ashtyn caught her keys in one hand glad that her motor skills still worked. "See you then." She said walking down the long hallway and out to her car and drove the short distance to the university.

"What do you know she is actually alive?" Connor, Brooklyn's boyfriend, joked seeing the blonde strutting down the stairs of the classroom like a model working a runway.

"Missed you to Connor." She joked sitting next to him and pulling out her notebook.

"How are you here?" Connor questioned figuring her immune system was weak and that she shouldn't be in class.

"I drove here. I only have one class and yesterday the girls and I went shopping. I'm slowly working up my stamina. I'm not quite feeling like my usual self but I'm doing well enough to be back."

"Morning class." Professor Hill said walking down the stairs and in front of the class. "Miss Miller it's nice seeing you." He said noticing the blonde sitting in her usual spot.

Robert walked into PPTH feeling a little tired and sluggish he was excited for tonight but he had to make it through his NICU shift. He grabbed a coffee from the coffee cart and changed into his scrubs. "Morning." He said to the nurses making sure none of the babies had deteriorated since yesterday as House, Cameron, and Foreman walked in. He ignored the nurse's chatting about how nice it was that he was there for the time being.

"This children is why we do not date patients." House said loving the opportunity to torment his employee. "How's she doing?"

"She actually went back to class today and say whatever you want to House you and I both know you are seeing Cuddy. At least Ashtyn doesn't work with me, yet."

"She's a psychology major why would she be working in a hospital?" House questioned.

"She's applied to medical school, you should see her GPA and MCAT." He said still proud of his almost girlfriend.

"What were they bad?" Foreman questioned annoyed that Chase was happy. He hoped her scores were terrible it would mean less competition once she graduated.

"Tell me is a 3.98 GPA and a 40 MCAT score bad?" He said watching House's mouth drop open.

"You're kidding right." House said having only made a 38 on his MCAT exam so long ago. "Was she sitting next to an Asian?" That was the only explanation for a score that high. "I'll be right back." He said barging into Cuddy's office. "I need you to pull the medical application of an Ashtyn Miller."

"Chase's friend is applying to medical student?" Cuddy questioned typing in her credentials. "She's pretty is that what you wanted me to see?"

"No look at her MCAT score." House said looming over her shoulder silently whistling to himself at the site of a 40.

"A forty that is very impressive, you didn't even make a 40 on your MCAT. Don't even think about ruining her chances of getting into med school." Cuddy said not scrolling down to the school's she had applied to.

"Well if you can access her file its obvious she's applied to Princeton. What other medical schools are within three hours from here that are in the same caliber as Princeton?"

"Stop interfering with your employee's love life. Ashtyn can get into medical school on her own merit. With that score she could go anywhere, as long as she doesn't come across as arrogant in her med school interviews. Which I doubt."

"I want her on my team, so why can't I meddle a little bit." He pouted wondering how Chase and Ashtyn would work together.

"House medical school is four years, don't meddle in her education or Chase's love life. Let them do it on their own. Now leave my office and don't interfere." Cuddy demanded scrolling through Ashtyn's application. She would admit that it seemed like she would be good for Chase; and judging from her medical school application she would be an excellent doctor. Her application was a bit terrifying with her grades, and extracurricular activities. He needed someone to make him happy and if the blonde made him happy then so be it.

"Alright class see you next Tuesday." Professor Hill said as the class got up to leave.

"Here is the paper that I missed and I was wondering if you could write me a recommendation letter for medical school?" She questioned handing over the five page paper.

"Sure when do you need it by?" He questioned having no problems writing a recommendation letter. Ashtyn was bright and he knew she'd go far in medical school. "Where do you plan on applying?" He questioned the blonde leaning against his desk.

"The AMCAS have sent my application to Princeton, UPenn, NYU, Hopkins, and Columbia. I might apply elsewhere but those are the main ones." She answered making a to-do list in her head before her date later. She needed to study, and find volunteer opportunities for her sorority. She decided to text Katie, the sorority president, to get some lunch in the cafeteria.

"I'm sure you'll be an excellent doctor." The professor said making a note to type up the reference letter.

"Thank you, I should get going I have a lot to make up from when I was sick." She said adjusting the backpack on her shoulder's and heading up the stairs and out of the classroom.

"What was that about?" Connor questioned he was leaning against the wall waiting for the blonde.

"I needed a reference letter for medical school since he has taught several of the psychology classes I have been in I figured he could write one up. So what do you need Connor?" She asked even though Connor was dating Brooklyn the two of them weren't really close despite also being classmates.

"I just wanted to hang out what's so wrong with that?"

"We never hang out. Let me guess you need to borrow notes?"

"No I want to hang out. Brooklyn told me you had surgery and I'm worried after all you are the best friend of my girlfriend. I'd be dealing with her emotions if something bad ever happened to you."

"Thanks for all the concern of my health. I'm sorry my death would be an inconvenience."

"That came out wrong." Connor admitted he didn't mean it like her death would be an inconvenience. "What I meant to say was I'd kind of like to get to know my girlfriend's friend. How about you and go get coffee?"

"I can't do coffee and I promised Katie I'd join her for lunch so I'm going to have to take a rain check." She said adjusting the backpack and heading off to the cafeteria which resembled the cafeteria from Hogwarts with the old wooden tables to wait for Katie.

Ashtyn grabbed her backpack and bottle of water and tossed her trash in the bin. She walked out of the building the fall air hitting her. She fished her keys out of her pocket and drove to Greek row since she needed to find something for her date and most of the clothes she wore for a date was in her closet.

"Welcome back baby!" A frat boy echoed watching her ass shake in those jeans. She rolled her eyes and swiped her keycard to get into the sorority house ignoring the frat boys.

She scampered up the long staircase and up to her room with Brooklyn. She tossed her backpack down onto the floor.

"The patient is getting worse." Cameron announced walking into the office.

"Well let's go annoy the kangaroo." House smirked collecting the file from the table and hobbling down the hall.

"Your baby should be able to be removed from the NICU." Robert told the mother who smiled.

"Dr. Kangaroo we need a consult." House announced handing him the file.

"Seriously Cuddy is punishing me by NICU duty I'm not working for you this week. I'm not sure she understands what a punishment is exactly. Sounds like a prion disease, do a brain biopsy."

"Wait my child has a prion disease?" The mother started crying. "What's a prion disease?"

"Different case your baby is perfectly fine he just had underdeveloped lungs which are perfectly fine. I promise your baby doesn't have a prion disease." He soothed the mother glaring at his boss.

"Oh and Chase enjoy your date later tonight."

"How did you know I have a date tonight?"

"Easy you called and made dinner reservations at a fancy seafood restaurant seems like a date to me."

Brooklyn walked in seeing a sleeping Ashtyn. "First day of class make you tired?" She questioned her roommate noticing the dress hanging on the outside of the closet. "Hot date tonight?" She questioned.

"Wait I fell asleep." Ashtyn asked bolting upright seeing it was five pm. "Shit Robert will be here at six. She said suddenly panicking that she wouldn't have enough time to get ready.

"Relax the hot doc has seen you in a terrible hospital gown without makeup on and he still wants to take you out a date after seeing you look awful. Go shower and I'll help you with your hair while you do your own makeup. It will cut getting ready in half. So where is he taking you for dinner?" She questioned.

"Elements it's a seafood restaurant." Ashtyn said scrambling to the communal bathroom which everyone in the house shared. It sucked in that way but it was well taken care of. With the high ceilings and chandeliers dangling down. There was even a spot for them to sit and do there makeup and hair. It was better than the dorms she spent freshman year in.

"Sounds fun." Brooklyn said plugging in the curling iron waiting for the blonde to get out of the shower. Ashtyn came out of the shower towel wrapped around her torso. "How are the stitches does Dr. Hottie know when they can be removed?"

"Hopefully tonight and in a couple days I get to have a follow up and then in seven weeks another follow up." Ashtyn said sitting down as her roommate blow dried her hair. "Thank you for helping me."

"No problem you'd do the same for me if I was running late for a date." She said sectioning off strands on blonde hair wrapping them around the barrel. "That's a lot of doctor's appointments."

"I'll have to see a cardiologist the rest of my life due to the dissection if only it was just the heart tumor then I wouldn't have to deal with all this extra crap." Ashtyn said sadly hating the thought of seeing a cardiologist every year for the rest of her life.

"That sucks." Go get dressed your makeup and hair is perfect. "Go impress the young doctor. You need a little happiness." Brooklyn said sending Ashtyn back to the dorm room. She shimmied into the pink dress with ruffles across the chest and buttoned the brown wedges onto her feet. She pulled a cream colored cardigan out of her closet in case she got cold. She stuck her phone, wallet, keys, and lipstick into a small cross body bag after spraying herself with perfume.

Robert got out of work later than he wanted to so he would just be showing up to the restaurant in a dark grey sweater and a pair of jeans. He pulled up to the giant sorority house seeing some frat guys on the lawn. Ashtyn scampered down the stairs and slid into his car. "Sorry I know I am a bit late." He said seeing how gorgeous she looked. "You look amazing."

"You don't look to bad yourself and you're not late." She said looking down at her watch. The drive to the restaurant was relatively quiet. He parked and the two walked into the restaurant.

"So how was class?" He asked feeling the first date jitters which was strange because just last night she let down her walls so he shouldn't have been feeling nervous.

"It was really interesting and just a tiny bit boring. How was work?" She asked as a waitress led them to a booth towards the back of the restaurant.

"House came to do a differential and a mother thought her child had a prion disease so I had to explain that it wasn't her son and the only thing wrong was underdeveloped lungs. So that was terrible other than it was easy the main job of NICU is making sure they don't die. How can a class on human sexuality be boring?"

"It was a topic discussed in another class so the lecture was similar to the other." She wanted to avoid the whole awkward first date feelings after all they did know a lot about each other but was at a loss of what to say. "What's your favorite place in the entire world?" She asked figuring asking random questions would be better than awkward silence.

"Bells Beach the surf is amazing, so where is your favorite place in the entire world?" He questioned at least there wasn't any awkward silence.

"It's a tie between Paris and London." She answered thinking of that trip her Aunt had taken her on sophomore year of college. There was just something of the architecture and rich history of both cities.

"When did you go to London?" Robert questioned as the waitress asked what they wanted to drink. "I'll just have lemonade." ideally he would have liked a glass of wine but since Ashtyn couldn't really drink he decided against the wine.

"I'll also have the lemonade." She said to the waitress. "Alice took me it was a present for getting perfect grades two years in a row. She was also there for business, but it was still an amazing two weeks."

"I have to agree London is an amazing city I almost done my residency in London. Paris is also stunning. So what type of TV shows are you into?"

"I really like Grey's Anatomy despite it being medically inaccurate. Criminal minds is really interesting the whole why the killer did what they did. The CSI franchise isn't bad either. The sorority girls normally gather for Pretty Little Liars, How to get Away with Murder, and Scandal."

"What no reality TV?" He joked figuring that is what most people watched. "I don't really have a lot of time for TV."

"Try living in a sorority house it's like reality television." She joked taking a sip of the lemonade. "I also just don't like reality television I've always wanted to watch Kim Kardashian go shopping.

"I can't stand reality television either besides its mainly fake and staged anyway." He said scanning the menu quickly looking for something that sounded good.

"It really is beyond fake." She muttered looking down at the menu.

"What looks good to you?" She questioned after having a sip of her lemonade.

"I was thinking the lobster dipped in butter looked good as do the snow crab legs."

"You get the lobster and I can get the legs and we can split?" She suggested wanting to try both.

"Good idea and we could get the lobster bites for the appetizer." He said setting down the menu as he tried to come up with the next point of conversation. What is your favorite color and food?"

"Probably pink or mint is my favorite color. Nutella there are just days that I just stick a spoon into the jar and eat it that way. What is the first and last concert you went to?" She questioned trying to figure out his taste in music.

"Journey was the first concert I went too and the last was Imagine Dragons." He answered as the waitress took there order. "What was your first and last concert?" He questioned finding himself staring at her green eyes.

"Backstreet Boys and Ed Sheeran." At least he wasn't a fan of country music or worse rap. "Why are we suffering and putting the added stress of a first date on us. You're nervous I'm nervous and I keep trying to come up with something to ask." She huffed she normally couldn't shut up and her she was acting like a middle schooler with a crush.

The waitress brought the appetizer and refilled their glasses of lemonade. "Your main course shall be our shortly."

"First dates are stupid." He agreed popping a lobster bite into his mouth. "What is your go to movie?" He questioned figuring it was legally blonde but he was trying to ease the first date stress. He liked her a lot so what if there was issues finding points to talk about.

"Mean Girls or Legally Blonde they are kind of a sorority cult classic even though I've seen them a thousand times. I also really like Pitch Perfect." She muttered feeling terrible about her choices of movies, but it was what she grew up on. "What about you?" She asked nibbling on the lobster bite after dipping it into the butter.

"I don't really watch a lot of movies I believe the last movie that I watched was one of those Fast and Furious movies." He sipped his lemonade. "So how long have you been a cheerleader for?"

"Nineteen years I did swimming for sixteen years. What about you play any sports when you were younger?"

"Surfing I still do surf when I'm back in Australia, but I've been surfing since I was three. Why did you quit surfing?" He questioned.

"Peter tried getting me away from sports, and I the swim coach was replaced junior year and I didn't really get along with the new coach so I quit. I miss competitive swimming, but I made the choice of cheerleading because I loved it more at the time. My dad used to joke that I was a mermaid. Surfing that sounds fun."

"Surfing is a lot of fun, and my mother used to say the same thing she had to drag me away from the surfboard when I was younger. So do you still love cheerleading more than swimming now?" He asked the way she worded it made him think she regretted cheerleading.

"I have days that I just wish I could escape back into the water. There are just some days in which cheerleading just seems so boring and tiresome. So what made you become a doctor?" She asked glad to be past the initial awkwardness of the date.

"I grew up around it and it came naturally and I really wanted to help people. Stupid answer considering its one of the main questions during the med school interview and I should be able to remember what I said. What made you want to study psychology?"

"I always found psychology to be interesting. It's fascinating the aspect of how we feel and why we do what we do. It seemed slightly more interesting than studying biology or chemistry, besides it will come in handy when dealing with patients." She stated feeling more relaxed as the date went on. She didn't understand why she was nervous hell last night she was using his shirt as a tissue and he didn't even budge. So she shouldn't have been nervous over a date. She just really liked the young doctor and wanted this to go well.

"I never could really get into psychology its cool and all, but it wasn't for me. I much preferred biomedical engineering." He watched the waitress set down the lobster and crab onto the table.

"That sounds interesting." She hadn't heard of biomedical engineering but she had heard of bioengineering which sounded fun to major in she just loved psychology.

"It was really fun and it really helped with medical school since we learned about the technology behind most medical devices. It was really cool and helped me a lot with medical school. So have you applied anywhere yet?"

"UPenn, Harvard, Hopkins, Princeton, NYU, Columbia, Rutgers, and Cornell. I'm considering applying to UCLA, Stanford, and USC as a backup plan if I don't get anywhere with the east coast. I'm just waiting to hear back from one of those schools that they want me to interview which should be in a couple of days since most med school's start sending out acceptance letters late October early November. I feel as though I'm a bit late with my application. So what were you like when you were young?" She questioned wanting to change the subject.

"I spent most of my time surfing it's a wonder I didn't turn into a fish. I wasn't really a bad child who drank and partied. Relax it's still early September you'll get there. So what were you like as a child?"

"A handful to put it lightly. I could never sit still my dad joked that sometimes I just needed a chill pill. I was always active playing a bunch of sports and learning to burn food." She joked about the burning food part, it was only once when she was four and they forget about the cupcakes.

"I think all children are active lord knows my parents considering taping me to a chair." He joked trying to picture a young Ashtyn burning food. "How did you burn food?" He questioned wondering how one goes from burning food to making that delicious dinner from last night.

"We got into a water gun food and the cupcakes went unnoticed. First and last time we ever burnt food." She said smiling at the memory remembering the day they almost burnt the house down.

Robert laughed dipping a bite of lobster into the butter. "There is nothing worse than burnt cupcakes."

"There were char marks in the oven from that day." She laughed cracking a crab leg. "At least now I'm not a horrible cook."

"So what do you want to do after dinner?" He asked wondering if she wanted to catch a movie or something.

"How about ice cream and a walk in the park followed by a stitch removal." She said being honest she wanted the stupid stitches out of her chest.

"Sounds like a plan." He said stuffing a crab leg into his mouth and chasing the bite down with a sip of lemonade. "So what is sorority life like?" Figuring sorority was a topic that would make her talk, besides he was curious.

"It's different living in a house full of fifty girls. I've been living in the house since sophomore year. You always have a shoulder to cry on, someone to give relationship advice, a study buddy, a drinking buddy. Whatever you need a sister is always there to offer help. Have a bad break up let's go to my room and eat an entire gallon of ice cream and follow it down with booze of some sort. You will also have someone to offer to go shopping. Granted there are times when you just want to duct tape someone's mouth shut. Sometimes it gets a bit overdramatic but for the most part it's really nice. College can get kind of lonely and it's nice having someone to lean on."

"It seems like Brooklyn, Tiffany, Layla, and you are very close." He said remembering those three from her hospital visits. "So are the sorority stereotypes true do you haze and just get drunk all the time?" He asked that's all he really knew about sorority's he just wasn't sure he'd be okay dating a drunk who was cruel to people.

"God no, I have never hated anyone neither has our house. The Delta Gamma chapter at Princeton was established in 2000 and there has never been one record of hazing the entire time it's been on campus. We do drink and party for the most part but I don't drink as often as some of the girls. It's nothing like what you see on TV or movies. We are very much a sisterhood who loved doing community service and giving back to the community. Trust me when I say I wouldn't be in a sorority if I was hazed or if I had to haze anyone. It might happen on other campuses but I have never seen a sorority haze. It's the one thing we pride ourselves on."

"I feel very mistaken on the sorority topic it's just society paints sorority girls as the female version of a frat and that's what I thought it was."

"Nope." She popped the p sound taking a sip of lemonade. "We couldn't be any different from a frat." She watched him pay the bill after they argued over it for a couple of minutes.

"Seems like it come on let's get fro-yo." He said holding out his hand for her. She grabbed his hand and the two walked out of the restaurant and the short block to the fro-yo place her wedges clicking against the sidewalk. "Shouldn't you be complaining of tired feet?" He teased winking at the blonde. That was a common complaint during a date or at least the past couple he had been on.

"Nope I've been wearing heels since about fourteen. Besides heels are part of my work uniform. I'm used to heels." She explained laughing softly.

"Where do you work that requires heels as a work uniform?"

"Nordstrom, I can wear flats but they find heels more professional and often during sorority events everyone is in heels. I'm also on the shorter side and I like the added height."

"Since when is 5'4 short? 5'5 is the national average you are an inch shorter than the national average." He pointed out she was short compared to his 6'0 stature but she was about average in terms of her height.

"It is short when most of the people you live with are at least a couple inches taller than you." She teased she wasn't super short but she felt rather short. "So you mentioned you worked with a team what are your co-workers are like?" She questioned as he held open the door for her and an older couple.

"House well you already met him so you know just how wonderful he is. Allison is a sweetheart and probably one of my closer friend's in America. Foreman is a total ass sometimes I think he is worse than House. He thinks he knows everything when I'm reality he had yet to diagnosis the right issue with the patient. He also thinks I'm terrible because I actually give a damn about patients. House won't even talk to a patient he likes to do his doctoring from afar. I think if Foreman could he would do the same."

"Foreman also sound's really lovely." She joked to her he sounded terrible to work with and if she got into medical school she would care about people she was just a naturally caring person. "Why become a doctor if you hate patients?" She questioned that just didn't make any sense to her.

"That is the question I ask myself every time Foreman badmouths a patient. I sometimes talk bad about a patient but only if they purposefully did it."

"I think that's common. I'll probably feel the same way when I'm a doctor. It's pretty hard to feel bad who smoked for sixty years and gets diagnosed with lung cancer. I know we shouldn't feel that way but it is partly there fault for doing something that is beyond toxic for them. It's also labeled on the package increases risk of cancer. So why four specialties at such a young age?" She questioned picking up her grapefruit flavored fro-yo.

"I initially started my residency as a surgical residency. I then took a one year fellowship to also become certified in intensive care, because as a surgeon that's where I spent most of time at in between surgeries. It also put me a step above most surgeons. I did all of that in Melbourne. About a year into an attending surgeon I heard about a fellowship under the great Greg House, so I applied wanting to escape my father's and brother's shadow. We all worked at the same hospital so you can imagine how awkward it was every time someone called for us over the intercom we all thought it for us. I also wanted a change of scenery and a change of pace. During my first year under House there was a lot of downtime so I was also doing a cardio fellowship mainly out of boredom. The nurse's joke I'm so kind of freak of nature."

Ashtyn are a big bite of fro-yo. "So how did you wind up working for House what even is Diagnostics anyway?" She asked curiously sitting on a park bench enjoying the fresh night air. "Wait so you aren't a cardiac surgeon?"

"The way most people see diagnostics is weird zebra's that were only mentioned a couple of times in medical school. It's basically a person's last shot at help if House can't figure it out then well the patient is screwed. I really like working in diagnostics it's never boring. Now how about we go back to the apartment so I can remove the stitches." He said tossing the empty container into the trash. "No I'm not a cardiac surgeon but I do know a lot about the heart. I'm a surgeon which means I can do everything from neurosurgery to cardiac surgery and everything in between. I do a lot of heart procedures though. You'll understand more once you get into medical school."

Ashtyn tossed her container and listened to him describe diagnostics which sounded interesting. "Good because these stitches are greatly annoying." She was being honest there was nothing worse than twenty stitches keeping her chest closed they were annoying.

Robert led her to the car and held the passenger door open for her.

"Why thank you." She said not used to guys holding the door's open for her on dates.

He went around the car to the driver's side. The whole American's driving on the wrong side of the road threw him for a loop the first time he tried driving in America. He drove the short distance to his apartment glad the date went well. He personally hated dated they were almost always terrible. He parked in his parking spot.

Ashtyn got out of his car and following him through the long hallway. She unbuttoned her wedges once she got into the door.

He went to his bedroom and changed in a plain black tee shirt and a pair of sweats as she went to the guest bedroom to change into a button down pajama shirt with the matching pajama bottoms. "Ready to get those stitches out?" He asked snapping on a pair of gloves.

"It will be nice not having my bra rub against the stitches." She said unbuttoning the top two buttons on her shirt not ready to go to second base on the first date.

"Let me know if anything hurts." He stated snipping the first stitch. She turned her head and flipped through the satellite guide.

"Any preferences?"

"No watch whatever." He said pulling out a rather stuck stitch. "Sorry sweetheart." He cooed seeing her flinch.

"Oh How to Get Away with Murder is on." She said wincing feeling another stuck stitch. "They are really in there good aren't they?"

Robert pulled out another one without any resistance. "A couple always seem to be more stuck than others. What's How to Get Away With Murder?"

"A show about this brilliant lawyer that Brooklyn got me hooked on. It's a guilty pleasure and not realistic, but great TV. So how many stitches do I have?"

"Twenty-six and aren't most TV shows unrealistic?" He snipped and pulled two more stitches out as she somewhat focused on the TV.

"That's a lot of stitches and yes highly unrealistic, but if you want realistic your better off watching a documentary. Damn." She whined that stitch wasn't wanting to come out.

"Sorry that is really stuck, however that was the very last stitch." He said discarding of the paper towel with the stitches. He placed a gauze bandage over her chest to help with bleeding which shouldn't happen, but could. He snapped off the gloves and tossed them in the trash. He came back to the couch and pulled the blonde into his arms and draped the blanket over them. "None of that would fly in a court room."

"So your smart, cute, an absolute sweetheart how do you not already have a girlfriend?" She questioned wondering how a guy like Robert was single he was a catch.

"I see through fake really easily and most of the requests I get for dinner are more like bedroom requests. Most people label me as a playboy and only think I want one thing and one thing alone. I also can't stand vapid and shallow who only like me because I'm attractive. I want substance in a relationship it's not always about sex." He explained Ashtyn was different than most of the girls he knew. For one she was strong and could take care of herself. She also just had that bubbly personality he was naturally drawn to.

"I know all to well about the dinner invite that is secretly a bedroom invitation. Most of the time guys don't even try to hide what they want. Main reason I hate most college aged guys." She muttered snuggling into side she felt safe with Robert which is something she hadn't felt in a while.

"Most guys between 18-25 are pigs." He admitted he had his own pig phase growing up, but he grew up a realized it was substance he wanted not just a one night stand. He watch her yawn. "Tired?" He asked knowing she was still healing from a major surgery and she needed a ton of rest.

"Very tired. I'm not normally like this." She complained untangling herself from his arms.

"You're had major surgery that tends to zap energy for quite a while." He explained slightly worried that she was still super tired and seemed exhausted at eleven at night. "You sure your doing fine?" He questioned feeling her forehead.

"Are you normally this overprotective of every patient?" She teased feeling fine just tired and sore.

"Not really no. It was just hard with you and is still hard. It's difficult to turn off my brain and just be Robert and not Dr. Chase. I'm just used to most patients lying to me about their health." He said honestly it was hard turning off the medical side of his brain and just relaxing.

"I would tell you if I felt terrible I'm just tired and sore. I won't lie to you." She said placing her hand on his shoulder. "Relax I'm fine, I had an excellent doctor." She winked crawling into his bed.

"I know you did I just worry." He kissed her lips pulling her into his arms. He was overreacting she was fine it was just the after effects of such a major surgery.

"I don't care if you worry." She whispered into the darkness she wouldn't lie to him about her health and she felt fine she was just beyond tired and her chest was a little sore and tight. She snuggled under the blanket and his touch and drifted off to sleep. It was nice having someone who cared about her sure it might have only been the first date but she felt like she knew the young doctor a lot longer. She also trusted him more than any guy she had met.

* * *

That is the end of this chapter, sorry it was so long. Anyway thanks for all the reviews, faves, follows they kind of make my day. ;)

Next Chapter: More cute apartment bonding


	6. Boys

Hi Y'all school has been hectic, and I might have had an tiny case of writers block.

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Robert awoke to a blonde asleep on his chest she looked a lot younger than twenty-two when she slept. He looked at his phone seeing it was still rather early in the morning and that there was no message that he was needed at the hospital on his day off so he snuggled back into the pillow falling back asleep.

Ashtyn rolled over sunlight trickling through her eyes one green eye cracked open seeing it was almost one in the afternoon. That was the latest she slept in a long while. She felt wide awake all well rested and her chest and arm wasn't sore. She stuck her feet in the panda slippers and made her way to the bathroom seeing that her hair was a mess.

She pulled her hair up realizing that she had slept through her classes not that it mattered she had taken all of the courses she needed to get into medical school and she could pass most of the psychology courses in her sleep. She technically wasn't supposed to be back to classes until Monday and it was Friday. Robert was sitting in bed rubbing his eyes. "Well hello sleepyhead." She joked seeing his surfer blonde hair stuck up everywhere.

"It's one pm?" He asked checking his phone. "I never sleep this late."

"Neither do I." She muttered. "Want to order a pizza for lunch?" She asked her stomach growling she didn't really want to cook and she figured he probably didn't either.

"How about sushi instead?" He suggested not in the mood for pizza.

"Sure sounds good." She wasn't really a picky person when it came to food and sushi did sound better than pizza. "Do you have to work?"

"I'm off today so you and I can just snuggle on the couch and watch movies or talk." He suggested kissing her lips as he ordered the sampler sushi platter from his phone.

"I've missed all of my classes for today so it is very much going to be a cuddle on the couch kind of day." She let out a half yawn settling into the couch.

Robert sat next to her. "Maybe you should set an alarm clock. I don't want to be the reason you fail." He teased she didn't seem like the slacker type.

"Fail a class you obviously don't know me that well." She joked laying her head in his lap. "So we both have the screwed up family thing going on."

"My family is nowhere as screwed up as yours." He kissed her lips figuring since she laid her messy past onto the table he could too. "How about I tell you about my past."

"You can if you want, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"I want to. You told me about Luke and your father the least I can do is tell you about my mother." He ran his hands through her hair. "My father is Rowan Chase who wrote the textbook on Rheumatology. He worked a lot finding it interesting for most doctors it's not as time consuming but he was one of the main discovers of Polymyalgia rheumatica and made a huge dent in SLE research. I just never could get into Rheumatology if I'm really exhausted I'll crack open one of his medical journals, those put me right out." He joked his father was massively successful in the medical community as was his step-mother. He was also successful, just moreso in the states while most people knew his father and step-mother.

"Around sixteen dad walked out after mother lost a patient and turned to the bottle. It started off innocently enough a couple of glasses of wine then it turned into several bottles of wine, and other stuff. I was left to clean up her mess all that she wanted to sleep. She was majorly depressed and didn't really want to get help. So the drinking and depression got worse until her kidneys and liver failed, at that point there wasn't really anything we could do. Alana was still rather young and blamed me for her death. So I went off to undergrad. I discovered partying all while dad was bankrolling my college education out of guilt. They tried dragging me back into the family but I just didn't feel like it. They showed up when I graduated medical school and I realized how much of a depressed idiot I was without them. My siblings and I act like nothing happened. Kristin is a lovely step-mother and Rowan and I bonded again. I still have days that I really hate mother for drinking herself to death."

"I have moments in which I want to go back in time and tell my father to put down the Cocaine and Heroin. That things would get better with Peter." Tears threatens to spill out of her eyes. "I hate him so much for turning to drugs to soothe the depression why couldn't he use depression meds like a normal person. I know exactly what you mean. He's my father and I love him but the man who turned to drugs was not my father. The alcoholic isn't your mother." She cooed still bitter over her high school experience. She got up from the couch and walked to the bathroom. "Shit." She cursed forgetting to pack tampons in her week bag.

"Robert I don't suppose you have a box of tampons or pads lying around?" She questioned leaning against the doorframe.

"I do actually I always keep a box under the sink just in case." He said pointing her in the right direction. His old girlfriend had a habit of forgetting them when she stayed the night so he kept a box underneath the sink in case of emergency.

Ashtyn found the box. "Thanks." She sat back onto the couch as he kissed her hair.

"Things happen we all forget things." He said figuring the week in the hospital threw her memory off. "No big deal trust me I've honestly heard every gross thing you can imagine. Periods aren't even on the list." He whispered hearing a knock at the door. "Lunch is here."

Ashtyn watched him fetch his wallet from the nightstand. He came back into the living room holding a bottle of Tylenol and their lunch. "Are you also a mind reader?" She popped to pills into her mouth.

"I'm not a mind reader, I'm just used to it I guess." He teased opening the container of sushi. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about." He noticed her cheeks were a little red.

"Yeah I guess it's true you do know my entire medical history and what birth control method I favor." She giggled softly dipping the sushi into the sauce. "This relationship started rather odd. I normally wait at least till the second to spill my medical history." She joked even though her and Robert had just admitted what was between them if felt like it had been longer.

He laughed at her choice of words. "I'm sorry but I kind of needed to know what medication you were on. I normally don't tell most girls about my past, not something I broadcast." He ate another sushi roll.

"My sorority sisters don't know anything I told you. It's not something I like to talk about but for some weird reason I trust you and I don't know why." She admitted almost like he had drugged her with some kind of truth serum, but she knew it was just she really trusted him. Which would probably only lead to a broken heart she tended to hide and not get involved. All of her relationships had ended with her on a bathroom floor crying loudly to Brooklyn as they had Adele on repeat and a tub of Ben and Jerry's in one hand. "The only relationship that is still going strong is with Ben and Jerry."

He laughed softly he felt something that he hadn't felt in a relationship in a long time. Ashtyn was different he just felt something more than with other random girls he asked out. "Does Ben know about Jerry?" He teased finding her easy to tease and he loved watching her smile.

"I would hope so." She ate another California Roll and a Spicy Tuna Roll. "You can't really have Ben without Jerry. It's kind of like pizza, beer, and football. They just go together.

"Football are we talking soccer or the American version?" He joked figuring she was referring to the American version of it.

"The American version, trust me I get really into football and hockey. I'm very much the type of girl who likes beer and football." She pointed out she was a girly tom boy. Her father had raised her on football and hockey.

"Hockey I like, about the only time I watch football is at a Super Bowl party. So what hockey team do you like?"

"Blackhawks and the Flyers. I'm kind of a tom girl." She said grabbing another sushi roll and taking a sip of water.

"I have a friend who is also a Flyers fan. He's tried dragging me to a game, it's just our schedules rarely allow for that kind of night out."

"Oh really you only talk about Cameron, Wilson, House, and Foreman who is the illusive friend?" She questioned looking down at her phone seeing a text message from Brooklyn.

"Will Blake, he and I met our first day at PPTH. He also came from a family of doctor's the only difference is his father tried pressuring him into following in the family's footsteps of neurosurgery. So I somewhat knew the pressure he was under. We've been friends ever since."

"I thought you dad didn't try pressuring you into a specialty? I have to know if he didn't decide on neurosurgery what did he chose." She asked curiously.

"Dad never did but sometimes he would drop hints at how lovely it would be to a father son duo of rheumatology. Will is an ob/gyn."

Ashtyn giggled softly. "I imagine his father loves that." She teased kissing his cheek. "I think all medical parents hope their children follow in their footsteps, but children aren't there parents and tend to have a different outlook on life. Look at your family completely different."

"You do have a point. I'm not my father and while we are family we don't really enjoy the same thing. So did your father ever hope you'd follow after his footsteps and become a chef?"

"He never tried to convince me to go to culinary school. I love cooking but realistically I didn't want to make a career out of it." She pointed out hearing a knock at the door. "Expecting someone?" She asked untangling herself from his lap so he could answer the door.

"Not that I remember." He said walking over to the door.

"Did someone forget about guy's night?" Will asked holding up the beer. "The Steelers are playing The Ravens. I didn't know you had company." He said noticing the pretty blonde on the couch.

"You must be Will." Ashtyn said heading off to the guest bedroom to well look somewhat human.

"That's Ashtyn? If you want I can leave." Will suggested not wanting to disturb Robert.

"That would be Ashtyn, and you can stay she likes football too. I normally work today but I had it off since Cuddy switched my schedule over to the NICU as a punishment. My days are all screwed up because of it."

Will tossed Robert a beer and placed the rest of them in the fridge as Ashtyn came back from the guest room in an oversized sweater and a pair of leggings. "Why don't I make dinner?" She suggested watching the game from the kitchen. His apartment had an open concept so she could see the game from the island. "Any preferences?" She asked seeing ingredients for homemade pizza. "How does homemade pizza sound?"

"We could always just order a pizza, you don't have to go through the trouble." Robert said looking at the blonde not wanting her to do all of that. "Come watch the game."

"I want to cook, it's no trouble pizza isn't that time consuming." She tied up her hair and got to work on the chicken making sure it was in bite sized cubes before dumping it into the pan with the buffalo sauce and all of the seasoning. "I can also see the game from here. That TV is probably big enough that people on Mars can see it." She teased winking at him.

Will snickered liking the blonde already. It was obvious that Robert really liked her. "So I understand why you want to break the rules." He whispered watching the Ravens score a touchdown. "Come on Steelers you got this." He didn't want the Ravens to win.

"The wheel route was clearly open." Ashtyn muttered making the pizza crust.

"You actually know football!" Will said staring at the blonde amused that she knew football.

"I'm a collegiate cheerleader I have to speak some of it. I've also been watching football since I was three. I also know soccer, baseball, basketball, and hockey." She sassed covering the pizza in three different types of cheese. "Pizza will be done in twenty minutes. She sat next to the guys watching the Steelers score a field goal.

"I'd stop putting my foot near my mouth." Robert suggested to Will watching the two of them argue over football. He joined in at various points but he wasn't nearly as passionate about it.

Ashtyn heard her phone timer ding signaling the pizza was done. She grabbed the pizza from the oven. Her phone rang with a number she didn't recognize pop up. "Hello." She said walking into the guest bedroom.

"Hi I'm Josh from John Hopkins University is this Miss Ashtyn Miller?"

"This is she." Ashtyn said sitting down on the bed.

"We were wondering if you would come in for an interview, the second round of interviews is next Tuesday."

"I can most certainly make it." She said writing it down in her planner. She hung up her phone and slicing the pizza. "Dinner is served." She handed the guys a plate and sat down with her own.

"What was that?" Robert questioned looking at the blonde.

"John Hopkins University asking me to come for an interview." She said smiling brightly surprised that she was already receiving interviews for medical school.

"This pizza is amazing." Will butted in complementing the blonde's cooking skills. "So Hopkins that's amazing it's also an amazing school." He knew from experience seeing as how that was the medical school he went to.

"How do I do the whole med school interview thing?" She asked realizing that she had a lot to do before Tuesday.

"Don't stress about it." Will said that was the best piece of advice he could give her.

"How do I dress?" She asked ignoring Will's piece of advice of not stressing.

"I'd talk to Allison about that, we are guys we slap on a tie and call it good." Robert said knowing very little about fashion if he wasn't working he was a tee shirt and jeans kind of guy.

"Can you text her for me?" Ashtyn asked wanting a shopping buddy and who had been through it before.

"Sure." Robert finished his pizza and texted Cameron quickly while the game was on a commercial. "Does tomorrow work for you?" He asked.

"It should. I have so much homework still left, and I know I'll be missing days for interviews." Ashtyn muttered feeling stressed about medical school, her health, making sure she was graduating on time.

"Sweetheart stop stressing, I can visibly see your stress levels rising. You aren't completely healed yet, and stress will only make healing a lot worse. Breathe and relax, it's not as terrifying as you think it will be. Watch the game and relax." Robert ordered placing his arm around her.

"Chill I was never stressed out at the interview process, you don't need to stress either from what Robert has told me you will be admitted into a fancy pants medical school." Will said honestly it was obvious the blonde was bright. It was also obvious how much his friend liked the blonde.

Ashtyn managed to relax and stop her mind from racing. It wasn't her fault that she was type A and worried over every little thing. She just wanted to get into a great medical school, she did not work her ass of at Princeton to get into Mercer School of Medicine.

Will yawned the game had ended and Ashtyn had disappeared into the guest bedroom to work on some schoolwork. "Don't screw this up, I actually like this one." He said being honest she was good for Robert.

"I don't plan on it, I like her a lot." Robert admitted yawning himself. "Don't know why I'm so tired she and I didn't wake up until one in the afternoon and it's only eleven."

"Must be rough I've been awake since two am." Will teased knowing full well that Robert had those nights too probably more.

Robert tossed the couch pillow at Will. "Boo-Hoo we've all been there wait don't you work tomorrow?" He asked since he was in the NICU until lunch.

"I have to work tomorrow too. I want to know what I did to Cuddy these shifts are starting to be exhausting. How can there be this many pregnant people in Princeton and the surrounding areas. I'm dealing more with pregnancy than usual."

"I can't help you. I avoid that department like the plague. I sometimes have to do a pelvic in the clinic but that's few and far between." Robert muttered that was least favorite department during medical school. He didn't have a problem with it and he knew a lot about the department. It just kind of bored him it was pretty much the same. Surgery was at least always different same could be said about House's department. "It could also be the fact that you are also board certified in general surgery, fetal surgery, and maternal-fetal medicine along with being an a general ob/gyn."

"I honestly can't remember my last full day off."

"Then why are you drinking? You better not be on call tonight."

"Relax mother I have tonight off, I mean the days I'm not on-call I still get called in, I've only had one beer that's not even going to cloud my judgment if I was." Will said noticing the blonde flopping onto the couch.

"Holy cow do you have enough certifications!"

"I graduated high school at sixteen as did Robert. We are still rather young in our careers, seeing as how we are both only 25. Robert and I have the same amount of board certifications. Mine are all kind of in the same department his really aren't." Will said being modest he just liked furthering career and education.

"You didn't tell me that." Ashtyn said referring to the whole graduating at sixteen thing.

"I'm a surgeon, intensivist, cardiologist, and a diagnostician. Surgery and intensive care go hand in hand as does cardiology. Just because they aren't all sub-specialties of each other doesn't mean they don't go together."

"I see your point. I should probably get going I do have work in the morning. It was nice meeting you, Ashtyn." He said putting on his shoes. "I'll see you at lunch tomorrow."

"Nice meeting you too." Ashtyn stretched out on the couch feeling exhausted after that paper on split personality.

"Hopkins! You got an interview at Hopkins." Robert said noticing that she was blinking repeatedly. "Tired cupcake?"

"A little, I blame that paper." She muttered. "I'm rather surprised with Hopkins." She felt excited and nervous at the same time. This was her future and she wanted to do great things.

"So do you know what you are interested in?" He asked curious as to what specialty she was thinking about.

"Probably surgery, it seems really interesting. I haven't even gotten into medical school so I have no idea what I want. I just want to get into a good medical school." She said as he ran his hands through her hair.

"I guess you are right that is kind of putting the cart before the horse. You could go anywhere with the scores you have. How has a whole entire day gone by?" He asked yawning himself. "I know you are probably are tired of hearing this, but how's the pain?" He reached for her wrist feeling her pulse underneath his fingers.

"I felt out of breath cooking tonight." She answered honestly meeting his eyes. "My chest also hurts a little."

Robert grabbed his stethoscope which was in his messenger bag by the door. "Breathe in sweetheart." He listened to her heart and lungs. "I don't hear anything out of the ordinary you might be moving too fast. "Do I need to remind you that it was major heart surgery? It might have been two weeks ago but you aren't going bounce back quickly.

"I know it was major surgery I just hate sitting around not being able to go to work, school, or do most of what I'm used to. I'm bored sure I've loved being able to get to know you but I really want to get back to work and have a somewhat normal schedule." She whined admitting defeat and boredom.

"I know it's hard but you are slowly building back the strength and trying to go back to normal. You and Allison are going shopping tomorrow and you start back to school and work Monday a med school interview Tuesday. I have to say you picked a bad semester to have health issues." He said knowing grad school interviews would be another week off from school.

"I know and I'm not even that far into the semester. I should probably make sure my professor's know about the interviews. I also need a note that my two weeks off were because of a health issue and not because I was too lazy to drag my ass to class."

"I can handle the note that's not a problem. Sounds like you are in for a busy week." He muttered kissing her lips which tasted like buffalo sauce. "We could probably make whatever this official, seeing as how this relationship started off anything but normal. I'm sure you've told most of the sorority girls about me and you've already met Will who approves of you."

"Brooklyn and Tiffany both know of you. I'd kind of like to keep the relationship quite for a couple more weeks, let the whole heart thing blow over and you and I can admit it at Kappa's Halloween party and you can be my date. We'd also need to come up with a lie on how we met. I don't want you to get in trouble with an ethics board."

"I don't have a problem with keeping it secret for a while let's not jump the relationship shark. Why don't we get ready for bed?" He suggested he had work in the morning.

"Sounds like a plan." She yawned getting off the couch making sure the kitchen was clean and the stove and oven were off. She grabbed a pair of pajama pants with cupcakes and a black tank top and went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. She applied eye cream and an overnight face mask feeling that her skin was dry. She brushed her teeth and went to his bedroom in the mood for cuddles she crawled on top of the shirtless doctor straddling his waist placing kisses across his cheek.

"I don't think so." He teased rolling on top of her pinning her to the bed nibbling softly at her neck. "You might want to wear a sweater in the morning." He teased sucking the spot gently leaving a hickey on her neck.

Ashtyn smirked toying with the hem of his tee shirt. "That's going to be fun trying to hide." She teased pulling off the green shirt and made her mark in the same spot he did.

"That will be easy for me to hide since I'll be in a dress shirt and tie." He smirked kissing her cheek. "Let's not go any further you are still healing."

She yawned as he rubbed her back falling asleep on his chest moments later.

Robert smiled turning off the bedside lamp trying not to wake her, it wasn't the most comfortable position for him but he didn't want to disturb her besides she was bound to roll over onto her pillow soon enough.

The alarm clock went off and they both groaned he reached over and turned it off heading to the Keurig waiting in the kitchen and brewed himself a cup of coffee before jumping through the shower as the blonde fell back asleep five-thirty was early for her even if she was a morning person. "You are supposed to meet Allison at the mall at nine:" He reminded before she dosed back off into a deep sleep.

She nodded too tired to form words as he jumped through the shower the hickey one his neck was impressive, he buttoned the grey dress shirt up to his neck and styled it with a black tie and tossed a green sweater vest over it. He grabbed his phone, keys, and wallet after kissing the blonde's forehead.

"Morning Dr. Chase." A nurse said seeing the cute doctor walk into the hospital.

"Morning Marisa." He said heading to House's department before being stopped by Wilson.

"I'm not trying to mother you, but I thought you were in the NICU until lunch." The Oncologist reminded the surgeon.

"Your right my brain is working this morning." He turned around and went to the locker room. "Morning Will." He unbuttoned his dress shirt pulling on the green scrub top.

"Damn looks like you and Ashtyn had fun after I left." He looked up from tying his shoes noticing the hickey.

"That's really none of your business." He teased slinging the pediatric stethoscope over his neck. "How about we get coffee before shift starts." The blonde suggested.

"Have I ever said no to caffeine of any kind?"

Robert shut his locker and followed Will to the cafeteria to get his morning coffee before starting his day in the NICU. "I'm tired." He muttered paying for his coffee noticing House walking his way. "Morning House."

"Nice hickey, you might want to borrow some of you girlfriend's concealer." House teased grabbing a breakfast sandwich charging Wilson's account.

"I ran into a wall." Chase lied sipping the red eye which was half expresso too tired to argue with House.

"Sure you did, don't forget you are back in my department at 12 pm sharp." He crossed his arms walking to one of the tables.

"Is it wrong that I will be sad to leave the NICU it's been a wonderful week not dealing with House."

"Nothing wrong with not wanting to deal with him. I'm glad my department doesn't really cross over with his much. I can't stand him he's a jerk and if I were you I'd be going back to surgery." Will said honestly he couldn't put up with House.

"I can't stand House, but the cases are almost always interesting and I still do get to do surgery, maybe not as much as I like." Robert admitted heading to the NICU after downing his cup of coffee as Will pager buzzed.

"See you for lunch, I have a baby to deliver." Will said running off in the direction of the delivery ward. Chase was reading the charts of the night doctors, and three babies were showing the same symptoms which was strange.

Will came in an hour later handing him another file with the same exact same symptoms. "Hey Will look at these and tell me we do not have an epidemic on hand." Chase said handing the red head the four charts.

"Have you told Cuddy?" He asked reading over the charts quickly noticing that all the babies had the exact same symptoms to a T.

"You honestly think she'd believe me? She is all on my case for asking a patient out on a date, and I'm also not House for all she cares House hired me because of my last name, not because of my impressive resume." He sighed looking at the charts trying to come up with a connection other than the epidemic he was thinking of.

"She might not believe you, but she has to believe me. I'm a member of the board. Come on you are more than just a Chase, same as I am more than just a Blake. We aren't our fathers and both have surpassed all the expectations this hospital might have had. You have proven time and time again you are more than just a pretty face with successful father. Now let's go break the bad news to Cuddy."

The two males made their way down to the main floor finding Regina at the desk outside her office. "Is Dr. Cuddy busy?' Will asked the nurse.

"No go right in." She said figuring it was something important seeing the files under Chase's arm.

"How can I help you?" She asked looking up from the file on her desk, once again House had a complaint lodged against him making it the sixth this month.

"There's an epidemic." Will said handing over the five charts of sick babies. "All have the same symptoms, weird thing is there is no shared personnel."

"Does House know?" She asked the two young doctors one of which was already a member of the board. If Will was saying there was an epidemic sweeping the maternity ward she believed him, Chase was also rather smart so he doubt this was a false alarm. "Any ideas of what it could be?"

"We need them quarantined and a team." Will admitted.

"Good go bother House, he doesn't have case at the moment and I don't want my hospital to become patient 0." Cuddy admitted she was the Dean it was her responsibility that these things didn't happen.

"What is the doctor of hoo-ha land doing in my office?" House questioned staring at the ginger. "I thought ginger's had no soul, so how can you be a doctor?"

"Hilarious and there is an epidemic happening in the maternity ward." Will crossed his arms over his chest knowing a cheap shot about his family was coming next. It was always the same with House his hair color, the fact that he was the only member of his family that wasn't a neurosurgeon.

"Yeah you would know about that wouldn't you after all you could be considered 'The Blake Family Failure." House said looking at Chase and Blake. "How'd the two of you even find a cluster for one you are both too young to have a medical degree and one of you is much too pretty to be smart?"

"How am I a family failure, because neurosurgery didn't interest me like it did everyone else in my family? I didn't find the cluster, Chase did. In case you are forgetting I'm also a general surgeon, fetal surgeon, an ob/gyn, and a maternal-fetal expert and I'm not even 26 yet. I also hold a chair on the board." Will said not in the mood for House's games. He was a doctor and there were five babies on the verge of death. "Can we please get back to the case?" He left of the part where he had saved House's job more than once

"House you saw my resume I'm more than just pretty." Chase crossed his arms tired of House's games he wanted to focus on the case of the five sick babies not his love life, or his intelligence.

"Five sick babies, no common personnel, no shared rooms. Yet all of them are sick." Will said pitching the case as House grabbed the whiteboard marker.

"MRSA. It's always MRSA in hospitals." Foreman said looking around the room. "Where's Cameron?" He asked watching the brunette walk in with Cuddy.

"Sorry went shopping." Cameron muttered grabbing the red file from the desk. "So what's Dr. Blake doing here?"

"Social call." Will joked catching the two women up to speed.

"Why were you shopping?" House asked curiously.

"Can't a girl decide to go the mall during her time off?" Cameron asked skimming the charts. "Sounds like a parasite." She watched as House wrote down parasite.

"It couldn't be it's spreading to fast." Will said leaning against the glass wall.

"He's right, but how do you know about parasites?" House asked Will was supposed to be dumb and delivering babies. "More importantly what are you still doing in my office? Last I checked I had three doctors under me not four."

Will crossed his arms looking at the older man. "I went to a medical school, just because you seem to think my specialty is easy doesn't mean I'm not smart. I got into the same medical school you did." He smirked thinking what would equal all the symptoms the babies had. "Virus seems the most likely."

"Kids are too sick, the blood work doesn't show lymphocytes." Foreman corrected glaring at Blake and Chase.

"Just because the blood work doesn't show lymphocytes doesn't mean they aren't there." Chase said looking at the chart.

"I'm leaning more towards bacterial infection." House said crossing off virus.

"It's always MRSA in hospital." Foreman said shutting the chart he was reading.

"It could also be a contained water source in the hospital making it Pseudomonas." Cameron looked a Chase or Blake hoping one of the other doctor's with her over Foreman.

"VRE." Chase suggested he agreed with Cameron but VRE also fit the symptoms.

"Alright start the kiddies on Vancomycin for the MRSA and Aztreonam for the rest. Do an MRI and check for abscesses. Come find me in the clinic if it's something important or unimportant. Blake I'd suggest you go back to your own department."

"I'm staying, how many times do you bother Wilson for help, when he has no clue what is going on. Besides I'm also a fetal surgeon I might even be an asset." Will hated House but he hated that his department was turning into patient 0 of some weird superbug. House seemed like the least terrible of the two.

"So now can we please talk about the elephant in the room, and by elephant I mean Chase's hickey."

Chase covered his hickey with his hand. "That's none of your business."

"Oh so you and Will were getting it on in the janitor's closet." House suggested pulling out his phone. "I wonder how the nursing staff would feel about the two most eligible doctor's being caught in a closet together." House said trying to get the dirt on his employee and also trying to make the ginger uncomfortable.

"House knock it off. Ashtyn had the exact same mark when she and I went shopping this morning." Cameron said noticing a little bit of the concealer had rubbed off during the morning.

"So why were you too ladies shopping this morning?" He asked wondering why Cameron wanted to hang out with Ashtyn.

"She has a medical interview on Tuesday and needed a girl who had been through it before and knew what they look for her. She also needed a suit."

"Where is this interview?" House questioned looking at Cameron curious as to where Ashtyn was planning on attending for medical school."

"Hopkins." Chase said watching Foreman have the pained look in his eye.

"How she's blonde, and well pretty." Foreman glared. "I'm a graduate of Hopkins."

"I'm a graduate of Hopkins too. You don't hear me complaining. Unlike you I see past the blonde and the pretty" Will said glaring at Foreman.

"Well then the quality of my university has gone downhill if New England Barbie is getting an interview at Hopkins or the fact that you graduated from there."

"You think you are all high and mighty, when you aren't. I've seen your patient reviews they make for a great laugh. You are House-light no one really likes you. Patients complain about your lack of bedside manner. Everyone knows you're the weakest one on House's team."

"Really then who is the strongest on the team?" Foreman asked resisting the urge to throttle the leprechaun.

"Are we talking patient reports, diagnostically, papers written?" Will asked knowing a lot about the four doctors in the room.

"How about we talk about the fact that daddy bought your seat on the board?" Foreman suggested finding it beyond weird that someone Will's age was already on the board.

"My father didn't pay for my spot on the board. So you're pulling the rich father card on me and not Chase. Just because our fathers are successful in their fields does not mean we are riding on their coat tails. If anything we have more to work for, since our last name puts a target on our back. So how about we go back to your terrible patient reports. In this hospital in terms of the patient's standpoint it's Wilson, Chase, Blake, and Cameron. You and House are tied for last in terms of patient care. Shouldn't we be dealing with sick babies and not arguing over who is the better doctor?" Will said leaving the room with Chase by his side. "I need a drink after dealing with House and after Foreman. Good God."

"Foreman just annoys me he has a high and mighty attitude and a huge ego with none of the skills to back it up. He is constantly getting the diagnosis wrong. I can almost tell you that it's not going to be MRSA." Chase grumbled going to the NICU and starting the babies on the medication.

In the end only one baby died all the others were saved and it most certainly wasn't MRSA. Chase stumbled into the apartment and on to the couch an into Ashtyn's lap. "Hey." She said kissing his forehead. "Long day?"

"Very there is nothing worse than the loss of a kid." He said as she ran her fingers through his surfer locks. It was days like this that sucked, it was days like this he wanted to cry. He knew realistically that people were going to die it was just terrible when you were running a call and a baby died because it was your call.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked watching him use her lap as a pillow.

"Maybe later, right now I want something to eat. So how was shopping with Allison?" He asked looking into her deep green eyes.

"I found a suit that didn't make me look like I was playing dress up in my aunt's closet. I made chocolate chip cookies, would you like some milk?" She asked getting up from the couch pulling down her flannel pants which had rode up.

"Who can eat a chocolate chip cookie without milk?" He questioned it just didn't sound right.

"I certainly can't." She poured two glasses of milk and dished up a plate of cookies and made her way back to the living room. "bon appetit." She joked.

Robert took a bite of the cookie which made his day less terrible. He ate about three cookies and finished up the milk. "I'm tired."

Ashtyn placed the three dishes in the sink. "Well let's go to bed." She suggest knowing that tomorrow she would need to get back to her usual schedule of school and the panic of getting into a medical school. Which meant going back to the sorority house and making sure everything was set before the start of her interviews, after all most med school acceptances were released in mid-October and it was going to be the second week of September. She had also gotten calls from UPenn, NYU, and Columbia today for interviews.

* * *

Sorry I've been busy trying to get my grades to a good spot before finals. Small amount of writer's block, and obviously it's the start of the holiday season.

I hope you like this chapter I decided to focus on something different. So let me know if you want more of the previous chapter's or something more like this chapter. As always thank you for all the wonderful reviews and the faves. :)

The case was season 1 episode Maternity obviously I changed some bits


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